Europe’s largest independent student newspaper – the voice of 120,000 students

* Friday, July 31, 2009
* By Hilary Aked

Prominent Kurdish politician Leyla Zana has been sentenced to 15 months in jail by a Turkish court following charges over a speech she made at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

The court ruled on Tuesday (28^th July) that she was guilty of disseminating “propaganda for a terrorist organization” because she is said to have called the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan “as important for the Kurdish people as the brain and the soul are for a human being.”

The court cited “speeches made abroad between 2007 and 2008″ which included the comments made in May last year at a seminar organised by the SOAS Kurdish society on “the obstacles and options for a political and peaceful solution of Turkey’s Kurdish question”.

Her lawyers demanded acquittal, arguing that this did not constitute propaganda, but the court convicted her under Article 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Law. It is thought there will be an appeal.

Professor Mary Davis of London Metropolitan University, who chaired the seminar, called the charges “completely trumped up”.  She said: “The issue is one of freedom of speech and academic freedom. If she [Zana] mentioned him [PKK leader Ocalan] it has been deliberately misinterpreted and taken out of context.”

The academics’ trade union UCU has unanimously passed an emergency motion of solidarity with  Zana, which calls on the Principal of SOAS, and the Vice Chancellor of London University to “defend the rights of academic freedom and to communicate this in the strongest terms to the Turkish Embassy”.

The University of London did not comment. SOAS Vice Principal, Professor Nirmala Roa, said:

“Our Principal has written to the Turkish Embassy asking for clarification about the charges being brought against Ms Zana.

“SOAS is committed to the pursuit and dissemination of knowledge. This can only be done effectively in an atmosphere of openness, mutual tolerance and intellectual freedom, without fear of intimidation or reprisal. For SOAS freedom of speech is paramount and the notion that people should be prosecuted for things said in an academic seminar at SOAS is deeply worrying.”

Janroj Yilmaz Keles, the chairperson of the Kurdish Studies and Student Organisation, condemned the decision of the Turkish court as a “direct attack on freedom of expression, protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.

“Turkey has to take active steps to provide a viable, long term peaceful solution to the Kurdish question instead of struggling to suppress the voices of those working towards this goal,” he added.

He called the sentence a discriminatory decision, adding: “Not only is she Kurdish, she is a woman, up against a justice system dominated by men, a woman publicising taboo subjects. This is one of many, many legal actions they have taken against her.”

Zana previously spent 10 years in jail after being arrested for using the Kurdish language, which is severely restricted in Turkey, when being sworn in as the first female Kurdish MP to sit in the Turkish Parliament.

In 1994 a court convicted her of links to the PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States, the United Nations and the European Union. She was released in 2004 following international pressure.

Zana is a former deputy of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) which the Turkish government alleges is linked to the PKK, a militant group which wants self-rule in the South-Eastern region of the country. They have been in conflict with the government for 25 years, over which time at least 40,000 people are thought to have been killed. But DTP leaders state that they support a unified and democratic Turkey.

Amnesty International UK spokesperson Steve Ballinger told London Student: ”The conviction of Leyla Zana is an unacceptable restriction of freedom of expression – something that we have sadly documented much of in Turkey.

“The Article under which she was convicted fails to distinguish between support for the political aims of an organisation and the violent means that it uses.”

The EU awarded Zana the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1995, and she has twice been nominated for the Nobel Peace prize. Turkey’s human rights record and the Kurdish question remain major barriers to it joining the European Union.

http://www.london-student.net/2009/07/31/kurdish-politician-leyla-zana-jailed-after-soas-speech/

July 29th, 2009

A court in Diyarbakır has sentenced Leyla Zana, a prominent Kurdish politician, to 1 year and 3 months imprisonment for her speech during a seminar on ‘Obstacles and options for a political and peaceful solution of Turkey’s Kurdish question’ organised by the SOAS Kurdish Society  and Kurdish Students and Studies Organisation at SOAS University on 24 May 2008.

The Kurdish Studies and Student Organisation (KSSO), is an umbrella organisation of UK-based Kurdish student societies. We aim to work with UK educational institutions and university communities to support and promote research on, about or by Kurdish peoples. KSSO has no political affiliations and aims to act as a neutral platform of intellectual debate on Kurdish matters.

We have invited many professionals and academics to give talks on varied subjects on the Kurdish language, culture, media and minority rights in the Middle East.  We have also organised a number of seminars on the participation of Kurdish women in the cultural, social and political life in their homeland and in Diaspora. One of our guests was Ms Leyla Zana, a prominent Kurdish politician from the Northern Kurdish Region (Turkish Kurdistan) and Prof. Mary Davis of London Metropolitan University to talk about a peaceful, political solution on Turkey’s Kurdish question.

We were shocked to hear that the Turkish prosecutor has taken legal action against Leyla Zana because she exercised her right to freedom of expression and conveyed her thoughts on a possible solution to Turkey’s Kurdish question. The opinion expressed by Ms Zana during our seminar, is shared and repeated in a different way by a number of Turkish journalists (see Hurriyet or Milliyet, Taraf Newspapers in June and July 2009). The Turkish judicial system has taken a discriminatory decision in sentencing Ms Zana to 1 year and 3 months imprisonment. The Turkish prosecutor had also taken legal action against Ms Zana after she expressed the same views at the UK parliament, later dismissing the accusations for lack of evidence. The same court has now sentenced Ms Zana for her speech at SOAS University where freedom of thought is considered a core value. British Universities do not operate under an oppressive and discriminatory agenda but under the principle of debate, learning and free intellectual exchange.

Freedom of thought is also at the core of the values enshrined by KSSO an organisation set up to promote the exchange of ideas and research on, about or by Kurdish students and academics. As such, we condemn the decision of the Turkish court against Ms Zana, a decision that can only be perceived as a direct attack on freedom of expression.

The right to freedom of expression is a cornerstone of democracy and is protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief, Declaration of Principles on Tolerance of UNESCO

In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), it is listed under Article 19:

“Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference…”

We are calling on Turkish government  to put into practice these international agreements and abolish all Laws that restrict freedom of expression in Turkey and rid itself from the legacy of the military junta.

Turkey has to take active steps to provide a viable, long term peaceful solution to Turkey’s Kurdish question instead of struggling to suppress the voices of those working towards this goal.

If you wish to voice your opposition to Ms Zana’s sentence, please contact the following:

Email the EU Commission responsible for enlargement and Turkey’s accession negotiations

- EU Commissioner Olli.rehn@ec.europa.eu
- EU Member of Cabinet responsible for Turkey Taneli.lahti@ec.europa.eu
- EU Turkey Civic Commission kariane.westrheim@iuh.uib.no

Email the following members of the Turkish government

- Turkish Prime Minister, Mr Recep Tayyip Erdogan: bimer@basbakanlik.gov.tr
- Turkish Ministry of Justice, Mr Sadullah Ergin:Email: sadullahergin@adalet.gov.tr
- President of Turkey, Mr. Abdullah Gül: Email: cumhurbaskanligi@tccb.gov.tr

Contact your local MP and raise awareness of Leyla Zana’s case

- Your local Member of Parliament (You can find your MP’s details at: http://www.parliament.uk/directories/hciolists/alms.cfm)

Contact your UCU, University Student Union, or contact the Kurdish Studies & Students Organization (mc@ksso.org.uk)

Call for solidarity with Leyla Zana

Posted on 04. Jun, 2009 by admin

Leyla Zana, 1995 Sakharov Prize Lauréat, the first Kurdish woman elected to the Turkish Parliament, and former political prisoner has been sentenced again to 10 years in prison by a Turkish court.

“Leyla Zana is an iconic figure, symbolising the struggle for justice, equality, human rights and peace, and speaking out to all the world about the appalling persecution of the Kurds over the last 80 years and particularly in the last two decades”. (Margerat Owen)*

Leyla Zana was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 1991 because of speaking Kurdish in the Turkish Parliament, which were claimed to be against the unity of Turkey. In 2004, after serving 10 years, she was released by Turkish authorities due to international pressure. Zana received the Rafto Prize in 1994 and the Sakharov Prize the following year.  Leyla Zana has been banned from participating in politics in Turkey since her imprisonment.

“Despite Zana’s sufferings and personal losses during the previous 10 years of imprisonment in Turkey, she has continued to speak on behalf of the Kurdish people, seeking a non-violent and democratic solution for the Kurds living within Turkey’s borders.

Upon being convicted for another 10 years in prison, Zana told the EU Turkey Civic Commission, “The case against me is a violation against freedom of thought, and represents a threat to every Kurd in Turkey. The decision of the court is just another way to repress, silence and punish the Kurds. “ (IFEX)

She is also indicted under the Anti-Terror Law and under certain articles of the Turkish Penal Code, as evidenced by her speeches made abroad between 2007 and 2008. This includes the speech she made at the Kurdish Society’s seminar at SOAS in May 2008.

Kurdish Society invited Leyla Zana and Prof. Mary Davis last year to talk about “the obstacles and options for a political and peaceful solution of Turkey’s Kurdish question”.  The Turkish prosecutor has taken a legal action against Mrs. Leyla Zana due to her speech at SOAS.

Case number 2008/1522 was brought forward by the Diyarbakir Chief Republic Prosecutor for “Press Crimes”. The prosecutor is demanding a prison sentence of 2 to 10 years under article 7/2 of the Anti- Terror Law in the indictment of 06.06.2008 (file no: 2008/781). TMK/2 refers to “the offence of making propaganda for an (illegal) organisation”.

The prosecutor is also demanded that she is charged under Article 53 of TCK in order to have her rights “to vote and run for a public office” revoked. Ms Leyla Zana says that she remembers giving the above sentence in her speech though she could not recall the exact content of the full speech. The 4th Heavy Penal Court has brought a case against LeyIa Zana under the file no 2008/318.

Leyla Zana appeared in the Diyabakir Court on March 31st to answer charges that she is a terrorist, praises crime and undertakes propaganda for an illegal organisation (the PKK).

She said “Respectable Judges, I would like first to point out that I consider it a disgrace for the democracy of Turkey that I am being tried because of my thoughts. The fact that expression of thought is being considered within the scope of the fight against terrorism underscores yet another topical and burning issue. It is a fact that to be able to express one’s thought is a guarantee of all other freedoms”. She spoke about fundamental rights of the Kurds to freedom of expression, assembly and of their language rights.”

Concluding she said “I would also like to take this opportunity to announce an important decision of mine. From now on, whatever the “charge” may be, I am thinking of not using my right to defend myself in trials. ….I believe in the senselessness of repeating ourselves. I wish for a process where an evolution of thought has been completed in which our people will not be suspects , defendant or prisoners because of their thoughts”.

“The reaction of the Turkish government to the victory of the DTP (the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party) – a fully recognised legal legitimate political party - in which they increased the numbers of municipalities won in the local elections on March 29th from 56 to 98 was violent, and totally unjustified. Over 300 DTP members, including 3 DTP vice-presidents have been arrested, detained or under scrutiny facing prosecutions under the anti-terror law and the Turkish Penal Code. This is the scenario against which the trials facing Leyla Zana take place – trials by a judiciary far from independent, and basically an agent of the state – and therefore she is in great danger.” (Margerat Owen)

We, Committee in Solidarity with Leyla Zana, call to watch zealously the developments on Leyla’s case; strenuously campaign on her behalf; write to MPs and MEPS, to trade Unions, NGO in the UK to not allow this time her imprisonment!

For further information, comments or suggestions, please contact: KSSO from Committee in Solidarity with Mrs Leyla Zana

Email: mc@ksso.org.uk or solidaritywithleylazana@googlemail.com

*Margaret Owen. Member Bar Human Rights Committee
 REPORT ON OBSERVATION OF TRIAL OF LEYLA ZANA MARCH 31ST, DIYARBAKIR