DİYARBAKIR - HDP Group Deputy Chair Meral Danış Beştaş, who visited the DFG in solidarity with the imprisoned journalists, said: "All journalists in Turkey should raise hell in the face of the 'photo of shame' displayed by the police."

 

HDP delegation, including Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Group Deputy Chair Meral Danış Beştaş and HDP MP İmam Taşçıer, visited the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG) in solidarity with the journalists arrested in Diyarbakır. HDP delegation was welcomed by DFG Co-chair Dicle Müftüoğlu and Mesopotamia Women Journalists Platform (MKGP) Spokesperson Roza Metina.

 

Speaking during the visit, Beştaş told the journalists that the operation was not only against the Kurdish press but also the Kurdish community.

 

'WHAT IS HAPPENNING NOW IS THE CONTINUATION OF WHAT HAD HAPPENED IN THE PAST'

 

Stating that the raids on journalists are a repetition of what happened, Beştaş said that in the past, unsolved murders and repressions had only one goal, and that was to hide the truth. Beştaş said: “Did they succeed? No. Since September 12, everyone has been trying to continue the totalitarian, fascist regime step by step in order to maintain their power. Their interference with  freedom increases public condemnations, not fear. We believe that together with all the opposition; we will overthrow the government. They will not only lose but they will be held to account."

 

'WE WILL FOLLOW THE CASE OF JOURNALISTS'

 

Underlining that the 16 imprisoned journalists are held only for their journalistic activities, Beştaş said, "They were accused of interviewing the people on the street. The prosecutor had the audacity to ask why they asked the questions they have asked. There is only one authority to make this decision and that is the President. The instruction comes from there. Prosecutors and judges take action in line with his decisions. A decree was issued yesterday. The place of duty of the prosecutors and judges has changed. One of them is the judge who lodged a statement of opposition in Gezi trial decision. The prosecutor Ahmet Altun who prepared the indictments like Kobané case and the closure case against the HDP was rewarded and promoted.

 

'WE HAVE TO TAKE A STAND AGAINST IT TOGETHER'

 

Noting that the free press, the Kurdish press, and the independent press have never surrendered, Beştaş said: “It will not surrender today either. We have full confidence in it. We did not take a step back in the face of these pressures. We will not do it now. Everyone who defends freedoms should expand this solidarity. Intellectuals and writers should lead the way. These operations will get worse. That's why we have to stand up against it  together. We will follow the case and the investigation together. We are always here, by your side."

 

'PHOTO TAKEN AT THE ANTI-TERROR BRANCH SHOWS THAT THERE IS NO CRIME'

 

Responding to a question asked about the cameras and the photos of the murdered journalists which were published by the Yenisafak newspaper, Beştaş said: "When I look at that photo, I see where Turkey is heading to. Displaying the cameras of the journalists as offensive weapons of the journalists is a shame. Those equipment are necessary to do journalism and they are not evidences of a crime. This shows how stuck the government is. Instead of finding the perpetrators of the murdered journalist Hafız Akdemir, they displayed the photos of the equipment of the journalist as if they found an evidence of their crime. The real crime here is to detain journalists for 8 days without a charge. All journalists must raise hell for that photo. There is neither a crime nor an evidence."

 

'THE RAID IS THE PART OF THE ATTACK ON THE KURDISH PEOPLE'

 

Speaking after Beştaş, DFG Co-Chair Dicle Müftüoğlu thanked the people who visited them in solidarity and said: "Solidarity keeps us alive. TRT, the state television tried to marginalise our colleagues. They wanted to prevent solidarity. However, a great solidarity network was organised. Our colleagues came from Istanbul and Ankara. We spoke about how to strengthen this solidarity. We know that this attack is an attack on the freedom of press and expression. It is an all out attack on the entire Kurdish people. Neither the closure of the HDP, nor the Kabane Case, nor the attack in Federated Kurdistan, nor the intended attack in Rojava are any different. As the elections approach, the government attacks all the opposition in order to eliminate the arguments against it. The Kurds and the Kurdish press are at the forefront of this."

 

'FREE PRESS WAS NEVER SILENCED'

 

Stating that they did not even know whether there were anonymous witnesses in the journalists' file or not, Müftüoğlu continued: "Our colleaques were held with anonymous witnesses and copy-paste statements that we do not even know if they exist. The free press has never been silenced for more than 30 years and will not be silenced today. Today the Musa Anter hearing was held. The day of that operation against the Kurdish press was the anniversary of Hafız Akdemir's murder. We thank you once again for the solidarity. Remziye Tosun continued the program of Aziz Oruç. We hope that this solidarity will continue. We need solidarity to shoulder their burden."

 

'WHEN SELVI ASKS THE SAME QUESTION, HE IS NOT ACCUSED OF ANY CRIMES'

 

Reminding the question the prosecutor asked the journalist Ömer Çelik why he was bringing up the isolation against Öcalan, Müftüoğlu said: "When Abdulkadir Selvi asks the same question, he is not charged with a crime."