“Mass graves” in Turkey. A human rights roundup

Thousands of people marched Wednesday in eastern Turkey to protest the government’s silence on mass graves uncovered in the area last month.

Posta Newspaper writer Candaş Tolga Işık was heavily criticized in several provinces for his article “Satellite dish terrorism in the south-east”. Protestors called for a boycott of the Doğan Media Group. Professional press organizations remained silent till now.

Co-president of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, Hélène Flautre attends Hrant Dink Murder and Pinar Selek trials on Monday and Wednesday. An appeal in support to Pinar Selek has been launched at the European Parliament “to support Selek’s battle for justice”.

According to the July-August-September 2010 Media Monitoring Report by the Independent Communication Network (BIA) Media Monitoring Desk, the judiciary persecutes independent media and media that voice different opinions on the “Kurdish Problem”. Its justification: “fighting against terrorism.”

The trial regarding the Sur Municipality’s decision for “Multilingual Municipality Services” resulted in the acquittal of Sur District Mayor Demirbaş, Diyarbakır Metropolitan Mayor Baydemir and 19 members of the municipality council.

Two defendants tried in two separate cases for alleged sexual harassment of women on New Year’s Eve were released at the first hearing. One of the defendants said, “A woman in a mini skirt and sleeveless top accused me. I know what honour means”.