Kurdish MP sentenced to over 6 years in Turkey on terror charges

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A Turkish court in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir on Thursday sentenced a Kurdish parliamentarian from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) to six years and three months in jail for terror-related offenses. The lawmaker condemned the court decision as “political.”

Diyarbakir 4th High Criminal Court handed Kemal Bulbul, who represents Antalya province, six years and three months jail time for “being a member of a terrorist organization,” reported state-owned Anadolu Agency.

Bulbul condemned the court decision and said he was charged for attending a meeting of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Congress (DTK) more than two years ago. In a statement on Facebook, he said the Diyarbakir court opened a case against him on January 4, 2018 after he attended the DTK meeting, adding he went in his position as the head of two Alevi institutions and on the invitation of the DTK. “If I am invited today, I will attend again!” he declared.

DTK is a civil organization working towards resolving the status of Kurds in Turkey. It was formed in 2007. Ankara accuses it of having ties to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Alevis are a religious minority in Turkey.

Bulbul said he attended civil society meetings as an Alevi leader and an individual, to fulfill his moral duty. He criticized the court decision that labeled DTK a “criminal organization.”

The 57-year-old politician described the ruling against him as “political” and promised to “continue the fight for freedom, equality and justice.”

He did not attend the trial in person. His lawyer has appealed the decision.

According to Anadolu Agency, a copy of the ruling has been sent to parliament to revoke the MP’s parliamentary immunity. Such a motion is likely to pass unimpeded through the legislature, which is dominated by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its far-right ally the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

Bulbul’s sentencing comes as security forces are cracking down on the DTK. Turkish police last week detained at least 72 members of DTK and the Diyarbakır Bar Association.

The organization’s co-chair, Leyla Guven, elected to the parliament in 2018 on a joint ticket with the pro-Kurdish HDP, was arrested on terror-related charges and accusations of ties with the PKK, an armed group struggling for the increased cultural and political rights of Kurds in Turkey. Most charges against Kurdish activists, politicians, and journalists are related to alleged links to the PKK. Kurdish parties and leaders accuse the judicial system of being under the influence of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his AKP.

On November 13, Erdogan announced a government project to reform the judicial system, though details have not been made public.

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