Protest note
After the European Parliament and numerous democratic circles have already taken exception to the violent police action against a women's demonstration on March 6 in Istanbul, we have learned of further human rights violations in your country.
As we have learned, on April 6, 2005, five members of TAYAD, an organisation defending the rights of political prisoners, were brutally attacked by a much larger group of right-wing extremists while distributing leaflets about prison conditions. The police had been informed in advance about the leaflet action.
The aggressors claimed to be retaliating for an incident involving a flag, which happened last month during the Newroz festival. This involved two 12-year-old children, one of whom dragged the Turkish flag behind him on the ground. The Turkish authorities then whipped up an ultra-nationalist campaign of agitation in the media and this has led amongst other things to right-wing extremist attacks on the Kurdish party DEHAP and to attempted lynchings. The authorities have undertaken no serious measures against these attacks.

In the attack on TAYAD members, it must be concluded that fanatical nationalists, ie. the Grey Wolves, were set in motion by government passivity and the tense atmosphere created in relation to the flag incident. Some of the aggressors claimed the TAYAD members were planning to burn a Turkish flag, and the latter were attacked and nearly lynched.
In spite of the fact that the TAYAD members carried out a legal leaflet action and were here victims of a serious attack and provocation, they were the ones arrested by the police who said they had "provoked the incident and caused unrest". This, although those responsible for the incident are clearly identifiable from photographs.
Since the incident on April 6, in several cities of Turkey protests by numerous democratic organisations have taken place. The provocations and lynch attempts, especially against TAYAD and other progressive institutions are continuing. When TAYAD members wanted to hold a press conference in Trabzon on April 12 and make a complaint, there was another attempted lynching. Again the police did nothing. A similar case was reported also at a protest demonstration on April 12 in Sakarya when members of the youth association who protested against the events in Trabzon were attacked by an organised group of ultra-nationalists. Nothing was done against the attackers. The only measure the police took was to detain the victims, allegedly for reasons of security.
We are deeply disturbed about these renewed attacks on democratic rights in your country, and would like to make reference to the requirements of the Copenhagen criteria. It is not permissible in a democratic country for freedom of expression to be attacked in this way without any measures at all being taken against the aggressors. We therefore request that you investigate and charge those responsible for these lynching attempts. And the behaviour of the police, who do not guarantee the safety and freedom of democratic activists, must also be investigated.
We protest against the attacks on democratic associations and their members and demand an immediate end to the provocations and attacks.