A short escape-

Using part of my annual leave, I could fly to Italy to meet my brother and sister – twins- for a vacation on Monday night. There was no extra document required when I was passing through the passport control. Tomorrow night I will be back in Istanbul.  A dear close friend joined us, too and we have traveled from Milan to Verona and Venice.

From a newspaper seller in Padua to an old couple who shared our gondola ride in Venice are all aware of tense situation in Turkey. But in any case, as a news junkie, there is no real escape for me. The purge after the coup attempt is enlarging and although most of the detained ones or closed institutions are closely related to Gülenist circles, more and more worrisome arrests take place. In any case, there are signs of ill treatment although minister of justice vehemently rejects.

I believe there was no reason to handcuff these columnists like this:

I hear that there is also an arrest order for Hilmi Yavuz, a 90-year poet and lecturer… Dear Bülent Mumay, a journalist with a long lasting leftist leaning, has already been arrested. Tomorrow he will have a trial.

I believe most of the wrongfully arrested- whatever that means- will be released soon. However, the impact of these humiliating arrest will last longer. I feel that there is still unrest and unresolved questions about the coup plotters but wouldn’t it be better  to limit arrests and closures to more possible candidates. It is very but very hard to believe that columnist Şahin Alpay has anything to do with a coup plan. But these are days of state of emergency. Ideal times to revenge all the critics…