Just yesterday, PKK terrorists attacked the government residential area with a bomb-laden vehicle followed by rocket launchers and long-barreled rifles in the Çınar district of southeastern Diyarbakır province and killed five civilians, three of them children, and one policeman (including his wife and five-month old baby). Yes, those were the 1128 academicians who signed the letter of support to this terror organization. One would think that they could at least -in one sentence- condemn all kinds of violence but they preferred not to...
Of course, I respect their opinions but most certainly do not share their claim on what is going on in southeast Turkey. Peace is a very political (cheap) talk that don't stop killings in this part of the world.
Necati Anaz
An academician who is against all kinds of killing
________________________________________
From: Critical Political Economy Research Network of the ESA: criticalpoliticaleconomy.net <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Nikolai Huke (Office) <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, January 14, 2016 4:52 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [CPERN] Turkey: Witch hunt against academics heats up with arrest warrants, investigations
Witch hunt against academics heats up with arrest warrants, investigations
http://mobile.todayszaman.com/national_witch-hunt-against-academics-heats-up-with-arrest-warrants-investigations_409656.html
The pressure on academics who signed a declaration for peace by putting
a stop to ongoing military operations in the Southeast has intensified
with the launch of an investigation against all of them by İstanbul
prosecutors as well as additional investigations into several of them by
prosecutors and the Higher Education Board (YÖK).
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation
into all of the academics on Thursday after a number of public
prosecutors already launched investigations into several of them across
the country on suspicion of their supporting and spreading terrorist
propaganda. Several universities have launched their own administrative
enquiries into dozens of their academic staff.
The academics are also accused of violating infamous Article 301 of the
Turkish Penal Code (TCK), which criminalizes insulting “Turkishness.”
Amid the pressure, the number of signatories has reached 2,000.
The Düzce Public Prosecutor's office issued a warrant for the arrest of
an academic whose initials are reported to be L.A. and works at Düzce
University on Thursday on suspicion of spreading terrorist propaganda,
prosecutor Kamil Erkut Güre said.
Hacettepe University, Bartın University, Samsun 19 Mayıs University,
Abdullah Gül University and YÖK have started investigations that could
result in dismissals. The number of the academics who faces
investigation have reached nine in total in these universities.
As a part of an increased clampdown on academics who raise their voice
for peace, the Küçükçekmece Public Prosecutor's Office in İstanbul
announced on Thursday that it launched a criminal investigation into
several academics who work at universities under the authorization of
the prosecutor's office, on suspicion of provoking the people towards
hatred and enmity, disseminating terrorist propaganda in favor of the
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), humiliating the Turkish Republic, state
and its institutions as well as Turkishness.
Professor Latife Akyüz from Düzce University's sociology department was
suspended on Thursday after the rector's office opened an administrative
investigation into her. In its statement to the public, the university
said the academic has been part of a campaign that favored acts of
terrorism that targeted the indivisible integrity of the state, adding,
"Those who support such campaigns will never be tolerated," in a
statement similar to those of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime
Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu.
The Düzce Prosecutor's Office also launched a probe into Akyüz on
suspicion of disseminating terrorist propaganda.
Abant İzzet Baysal University Rector Professor Hayri Coşkun announced on
Thursday that an administrative investigation was launched against three
academics who put their signatures to the declaration from the university.
Speaking on Thursday, Prime Minister Davutoğlu claimed that the petition
signed by 1,128 academics cannot be tolerated as freedom of speech,
adding: "This is an irrational declaration. When they read it again,
they will regret it. It cannot be considered in the context of freedom
of thought."
The declaration criticized security operations and called for an end to
the curfews and fresh peace efforts.
Davutoğlu went on to say: "It is saddening that our academics have
signed such a declaration when we are talking about a fight against
terror, ISIL [Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant] on one side and a
separatist group that killed a baby on the other," Reuters reported.
'Freedom of speech is under grave threat in Turkey'
In response to reactions pouring in against the declaration, some of its
signatories have raised their voices and stand by the call for the
restoration of peace in the predominantly Kurdish area and in the whole
country.
Speaking with Today's Zaman on Thursday, Baki Tezcan, associate
professor of history from the University of California, said the
investigations into the academics came after President Erdoğan's
critical comments.
"There is a Turkish saying, 'If the Imam acts this way, what would the
congregation do?' Yesterday, President Erdoğan targeted the signatories
as 'colonialists' and 'traitors,' and today several universities
launched administrative investigations against faculty members who
signed the statement, a court opened a case against one of them in
Kayseri while Sedat Peker declared that he will take a shower with the
blood of the signatories.
"The only sane voice of the day belongs to İsmail Rüştü Cirit, the chief
justice of the court of cassation, who emphasized the significance of
freedom of expression during a speech he gave at the International
Conference on Law organized by the Ankara Bar: 'Freedom of speech is not
only a fundamental right in the catalog of human rights but it is also a
society's power of intelligence and understanding.' Unfortunately,
freedom of speech is under grave threat in Turkey where a witch hunt
against the signatories of this statement for peace is led by the very
president of the country," Tezcan noted.
Speaking to BBC Türkçe, Professor Neşe Özgen, one of the signatories of
the declaration, said they will continue to pursue the roadmap
previously drawn up on the matter and there are some new signatories in
the declaration despite the criminal and administrative investigations
into the academics.
"This is not the first attack academics have experienced and will
seemingly not be the last. The support for the declaration from the
academic world is increasing. Also, necessary legal actions will be
taken against threatening remarks and practices by the universities.
These legal actions will include those state officials and anyone who
explicitly made threats. Our legal counselors have already taken action
in this direction. No single person or institution will be exempt from
this initiative. None of our colleagues will be left alone in the face
of such attacks," Özgen said.
Tahsin Yeşildere, head of the University Instructors' Association, and
also a signatory of the statement for peace, told Today's Zaman on
Thursday that academic freedom is essential in universities.
"Even though YÖK refused to evaluate the statement under academic
freedom, it should be acknowledged that universities are places where
all kind of opinions can be expressed. So, academics don't have to share
or support the idea defended by the state. No one should face threats
due to their views. Being paid by the state does not bring about
approving any action performed by it. The culture of submissiveness is
not something that has taken root in the academic world. In response to
those investigations, the debate will be taken to the international
courts when the principle of rule of law does not prevail in the
country," Yeşildere said.
Posting a tweet on her personal account, Associate Professor Itır Erhart
wrote on Thursday that YÖK was against them for accepting headscarved
students in the past and now it is launching an investigation for their
wanting peace.
Meanwhile, the pro-government media have continued their defamation
campaign against the academics as the Yeni Akit daily published the full
list of the signatories on Thursday and accused them of treason.
Opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) İstanbul deputy İzzet Ulvi
Yönter labeled the universities as home to terrorists.
"The government should immediately take action and a fight like that
which is conducted in the Sur, Cizre, Dargeçit and Silopi districts
should be put into practice against the terrorists in universities,"
Yönter argued.
On Monday, President Erdoğan took aim at those academics who signed the
petition and labeled them traitors, as well as accusing them of being a
fifth column of foreign power destined to undermine Turkey's national
security.
Even a notorious criminal, Sedat Peker, threatened the academics,
saying, "We will spill your blood and we will take a shower in your
blood," on Wednesday.
Last Sunday, 1,128 academics from 89 universities, both home and abroad,
issued a declaration in which they called for the restoration of
national peace by halting the ongoing military operations in the
Southeast of Turkey and returning to the negotiating table to restart
the shelved talks with the Kurds to find peaceful solutions to the
Kurdish issue.
A large number of civilians have been killed in confrontations between
security forces and the PKK in southeastern towns and cities since a
fragile cease-fire collapsed in late July. Curfews lasting more than a
week have been imposed on several tense districts in the provinces of
Diyarbakır, Hakkari, Mardin, Şırnak and Van. According to a report
released by the Human Rights Association (İHD) in October, more than 100
civilians have been killed in the region since late July.
--
Nikolai Huke
Promotionsstipendiat der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung
Philipps-Universität Marburg
[log in to unmask]
http://nhuke.blogsport.de
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