This is a vindictive, politically motivated show trial without a shred of evidence of actual crimes. It should be stopped at the first hearing.The prosecution has concocted a case simply to send a strong message to the rest of Turkey that the authorities will ruthlessly pursue anyone who dissents and organises protests against government policies.
The Turkish authorities have been relentless in their crackdown on protesters – be it police violence on the streets or by prosecuting them through the courts. Meanwhile the police enjoy near total impunity. The message is clear: peaceful demonstrations will not be tolerated.
06/06/2014 – Amnesty International today expressed concern that the definition of marriage included in a new constitutional amendment contravenes international and European human rights law, and will discriminate against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) individuals on the ground of their sexual orientation.
“Rather than deterring those in need, Europe’s preventative approach to migration is putting lives in danger. No matter how high we build our walls, people will always try to escape conflict and poverty.”
Credit: Игорь Титаренко https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/
The hearing was a grim farce. The court had the opportunity to uphold the right to freedom of association. Instead, it has helped the authorities put another nail in its coffin.
23/05/2014 – Amnesty International calls for an immediate, impartial and effective investigation into the deaths of two people following clashes between youths and police in the Okmeydaný district of Istanbul on 22 May.
19/05/2014 – On 14 May 2014, the City Court in Novocherkassk, in south-western Russia, ordered the NGO Alliance of Women of the Don, to register as “an organization performing the functions of a foreign agent”.
This was a tragedy that should have been avoided. The long history of deaths in mines in Turkey raises chilling questions over workers’ safety. The fact that the government rejected recent calls by parliamentarians to investigate serious work-related accidents is nothing short of shocking. They are playing with people’s lives.
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT
12/05/2014 – Amnesty International fears that the Serbian authorities will ban the 2014 Pride. The 2011, 2012 and 2013 Pride marches were cancelled, after the Serbian authorities had claimed that the police did not have the capacity to ensure adequate security conditions in the face of “serious security threats”.
09/05/2014 – Ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) on Monday 12 May, Amnesty International calls on you to ensure that, in line with previous FAC decisions, all transfers of equipment that can be used for “internal repression” will remain suspended to Egypt and Ukraine until the relevant authorities have taken appropriate measures to address the concerns which have led to the suspensions.