Turkey puts 205 on trial over links to militants

A NOBEL Peace Prize nominee was among more than 200 people who went on trial in Turkey yesterday accused of links to Kurdish militants, in a case which has drawn international criticism of Ankara’s record on freedom of speech.

The 205 defendants are accused of maintaining ties to the Union of Kurdistan Communities (KCK), allegedly the urban wing of the militant separatist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The trial, and others like it across the country, have led rights groups to question the commitment of prime minister Tayyip Erdogan’s government to freedom of expression. Some 100 journalists are currently in jail on various charges linked to their reporting.

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Hundreds of Kurds gathered in and outside the high-security courtroom 40 miles from Istanbul to support the defendants, many wearing scarves in Kurdish red, yellow and green colours.

Among the defendants is Ragip Zarakolu, a publisher nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Swedish MPs in March. He has faced repeated legal action over controversial books he has published.

The trial began with most of the defendants answering in Kurdish “Ez li virim” – “I am here” – when the judge read their names. Defendants’ lawyers demanded the court bring in interpreters, but this was denied.

“It’s not Kurds or Kurdish that is being tried here, this case is looking into an illegal and armed organisation,” Judge Ali Alkis said, prompting lawyers to leave the court in protest.

The PKK has waged an armed campaign against the Turkish state for autonomy in the mainly Kurdish south-east that has claimed more than 40,000 lives since 1984. It is labelled a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

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