human rights

Boing Boing presents Courtroom sketches of Julian Assange; An anthro prof. writes about Anonymous vs. The Guardian…

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Courtroom sketches of Julian Assange from Boing Boing by Rob Beschizza English judges are less inclined to allow cameras, recording devices and other newfangled distractions into courtrooms than their American counterparts. This point was highlighted in recent days by Justice Ousley’s unprecedented decision to temporarily allow reporters to hammer away on Twitter as Julian Assange’s … Read more

Students now beaten at ODTÜ. A human rights roundup.

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It looks like AKP power consolidates as center right and old patterns of malpractices emerge. Erdoğan?s trial by criticism from Today’s Zaman, your gateway to Turkish daily news :: Turkish Pre by Mehmet Barlas Just as novelist Halide Edip Adıver wrote a book titled ?Türk?ün Ateşle İmtihanı? (Turkish trial by fire) Prime Minister Recep Tayyip … Read more

Menderes Yılmaz, the racist of the month

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Mr. Yılmaz is the head of the judges in the KCK trial. When one of the defendants began to speak Kurdish, Mr. Yılmaz stopped him and stated that the defendant spoke an “unknown language”, so-called Kurdish. The judge thus became the embodiment of denial politics against Kurds/Kurdish… The racist of the month survey is presented … Read more

I have no sympathy for the egg-throwers, still, Police Brutality cannot be accepted

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I wonder if some of our freedom loving citizens were that sensitive for the stone throwing Kurdish kids. I witness an alliance between gauchist Turkish groupuscules and mainstream opposition parties and citizens against the government. Probably these groupuscules are enjoying their time as they could never get that much media attention if times were different. … Read more

In the mean time, Büyükada Orphanage goes back to real owners….

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photo credit Attention: Humanity being lost at Turkey-Greece border by RECEP KORKUT from Today’s Zaman, your gateway to Turkish daily news :: Op-Ed by RECEP KORKUT It is midnight on the border between Turkey and Greece. Special teams on rotation at the border are hypersensitive and on the look out for enemies they pursue with … Read more

A possibly another grave failure from Turkish judiciary: Pınar Selek found guilty…

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Sociologist guilty in 1998 Spice Bazaar blast, top Turkish court rules from Hurriyet Dailynews The Supreme Court of Appeals has ruled that the 1998 explosion in Istanbul’s Spice Bazaar was caused by a bomb placed there by sociologist Pınar Selek. NTV interview with Ms Selek in Turkish here. Öğrencilere verilen ceza için ben de başbakanı … Read more

Letter Q is still a threat for some of our wise judiciary members…

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via Letter “Q” Constitutes Element of Crime from Bianet :: English Sociologist Beşikçi and Layer Şimşek are accused of “spreading propaganda for the PKK”. In the second hearing of the case, the prosecutor saw an element of crime in the use of the letter “q”, which is not part of the Turkish but of the … Read more

for the record: PKK had threatened TAK, its offshoot

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http://www.nationalturk.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Taksim-suicide-bomb-280x183.jpg

PKK’s Leadership Threatens Group That Carried Out Istanbul Attack

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Istanbul’s Taksim square near a police station where the bomber blew himself up.—– Photo/Reuters. ERBIL, Iraqi Kurdistan: The leadership of the

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A list of imprisoned journalists in Turkey

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A longer list can be found in International Federation of Journalists’  site via here and here. 1-  Abdulcabbar Karadağ, Azadiya Welat Gazetesi Mersin Temsilcisi, Mersin E Tipi Kapalı Cezaevi 2- Ahmet Birsin, Gün TV Genel Yayın Koordinatörü, Diyarbakır D Tipi Cezaevi 3- Ali Buluş, DİHA Mersin Muhabiri, Karaman-Ermenek M Tipi Cezaevi 4- Ali Çat, Azadiya … Read more

YouTube ban lifted. But not web censorship…

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YouTube Ban Finally Lifted from Bianet :: English The access ban to the YouTube video sharing site was lifted after 2.5 years subsequent to the removal of the controversial videos that allegedly insulted the memory of Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic. Turkey Lifts YouTube Ban from Mashable! by Stan Schroeder Turkey has lifted its … Read more

IHD’s ethnic lynch in Turkey report (2005-2010) (in Turkish)

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the report of Human Rights Association can be found here. ************************ Il y a cent ans, le paquebot Kurdistan sombrait au large du Finistère. (100 sene önce Bretagna?da Kurdistan gemisi batmis) from YOL (routes de Turquie et d’ailleurs) by anne Ancient Winemaking Makes Resurgence in Southeast Turkey | Europe | English A Good Change: Religious … Read more

Another dark moment for the Turkish judiciary: Hrant Dink murderer to be tried at Juvenile Court

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and he will probably get a short sentence and be out soon… Dark alliance behind this triggerman remains unraveled… Triggerman Suspect to be Tried at Juvenile Court from Bianet :: English The 15th hearing of the trial regarding the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink is currently held in Istanbul – the first session after … Read more

RSF report: Turkey in free fall in press freedom…

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Here is the link for the report…. The state of journalism in Turkey is miserable. Journalists themselves are part of the problem but the state, the government, the judiciary make it worse… Turkey in Free Fall from Bianet :: English Turkey ranges in 138th position among 178 countries reviewed for the World Press Freedom Index … Read more

Conscientious Objector İnan Süver, still in prison!

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Conscientious Objector Süver Remains in Prison from Bianet :: English The Izmir Şirinyer Military Court dismissed the request for the release of conscientious objector İnan Süver. Süver is said to have been sentenced to imprisonment of 35 months. The case was adjourned to 15 November. from the CNN Turk’s new ad campaign found in CNN … Read more

Noam Chomsky in Istanbul

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Some friends were absolutely excited about it as he was to attend free speech event in Istanbul Bilgi University. I was not so. Mr. Chomsky’s arguments are known, nothing new. That doesn’t mean I don’t disagree with most of his arguments but I wish an academic of such a calibre would invest more time on … Read more