ANKARA - HDP MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu said "How else can a person explain the describe a baton placed inside an anus?' when his motion for torture was returned on grounds of the words used to describe sexual assault with a baton.

 

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu's parliamentary question regarding the torture allegations to the Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu was returned due to the statement "They placed a weapon in my son's friend's anus". A statement was published with the signature of Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop on the motion that was returned on the grounds of "vulgar and hurtful" words in Article 67 of the Parliament's Bylaws.

 

Şentop stated that the motion was returned not because of the torture allegations, but because of the statements made describing the torture. In the statement, it was stated that legal action would be taken against Gergerlioğlu because of his words “the Presidency of the Parliament covered up the torture”.

 

THE DESCRIPTION

 

The motion submitted by Gergerlioğlu to the ministries regarding the allegations of "strip search" against Boğaziçi University students, was returned due to the statements, 'strip search', the word 'pogrom' used for the incidents of September 6-7, 'sexual assault with a weapon'by Şentop who told that the statements were "vulgar and hurtful". Gergerlioğlu said: "Let the action be described by those who subjected the prisoners to this kind of torture. The person tortured by him is just trying to describe how bad he was treated and how it hurt him. These are not easy things to tell to people. The parliament should investigate if this person was violated with a baton. These are crimes against humanity. Saying how he was tortured is not an insult to anyone. That person is merely telling what he was subjected to. We did not use these statements, the person who lived through is telling what happened to them."

 

HOW ELSE CAN YOU DESCRIBE?

 

Gergerlioğlu continued: "Now I am asking you. How else can this citizen describe what happened to him? Just tell us how not to describe this without being 'vulgar and hurtful' and we'll tell them to correct their statement. We are members of parliament. We are here to protect the rights of the people. A parliamentary spokesperson  came with an election over all of us and promised to protect them. He is the person who is in charge of protecting the rights of the nation at the highest level, but such a painful event is tried to be covered up with flimsy reasons. He returned the motion to us so we sent it back to him. We want to know how to describe being violated with a baton without being vulgar and hurtful."

 

'I WILL CONTINUE TO TELL THE TRUTH'

 

Criticising Şentop for saying that he will take legal action against Gergerlioğlu, Gergerlioğlu said: "He said he will take legal action. How can I not say something is a crime, when it is obviously and without question a crime? You have stripped me of my status as an MP for speaking out about strip search, but I came back. I did not give up and I never will. Do what you can. I will continue to tell the truth. Until we have justice, until human's rights prevail."

 

 

MA / Berivan Altan