Turkey jails pro-Kurdish mayor for nearly 20 years

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey: A court in Turkey jailed Wednesday a pro-Kurdish mayor for 19 and a half years for “terrorism”, his lawyer said, a ruling denounced as a “coup d´etat” by his party.

Mehmet Siddik Akis was removed from his post and placed in detention just two days earlier, provoking outrage and brawls in Turkey´s parliament. Denouncing a “political trial”, Akis said: “I´m 53 years old, I´ve been fighting for all these years and I´ll continue to fight.” Tulay Hatimogullari, co-president of his party, the DEM, said in a statement that “The presidency and the judiciary have now declared war on the entire people.” The ruling AKP party was carrying out a “coup d´etat in broad daylight”, she added.

Akis served as mayor of the southeastern town of Hakkari for the DEM, which the authorities accuse of links to the outlawed PKK Kurdish militants. Akis and the party have denied any such links. Following his conviction scuffles broke out in the town, footage posted on social media showed. On Monday, the governor of the province of Hakkari had banned any demonstrations until June 12. The governor of the mainly Kurdish province of Bingol issued a similar seven-day ban on Wednesday.

Hatimogullari, who had travelled to Hakkari to hear the judgment, said soldiers had been deployed to prevent anyone from protesting.”Even our co-presidents and deputies were prevented from marching,” she said. The party has vowed to continue its protests in Hakkari province, despite the ban.