The Confederation of Oppressed Migrants in Europe (AVEG-KON) released a written statement regarding Medya Haber TV presenter and journalist Heval Arslan, who was detained in the city of Ninove.

The statement recalled that Arslan was detained without a court order, that all of her belongings were confiscated, and that she was subjected to a strip search before being placed in a cell. It added that while in custody, the journalist was subjected to psychological pressure with threats of deportation first to France and then to Turkey.

The statement also drew attention to the fact that Arslan, who is in Belgium due to her journalistic activities and who applied for asylum in recent months, faces uncertainty as to whether her right to asylum would be recognized if deported to France. It emphasized the danger that Arslan, who faces multiple lawsuits and arrest warrants in Turkey, could be handed over to Turkish authorities.

The AVEG-KON statement continued: “With this attitude, the Belgian state continues to criminalize Kurds. The same motives that led to last year’s police raid on Medya TV are now applying similar pressures on journalists. The French state’s repression of Kurds and opposition groups also continues at full speed. On Thursday morning, in the city of Draguignan, France, police raids targeted the Democratic Kurdish Community Center and several private residences, resulting in the detention of three people. These attacks, which target Kurdish individuals and institutions, are clearly intended to intimidate and suppress migrant workers and laborers organized in Europe. At a time when racist-fascist attacks are on the rise, migrant workers and laborers, their institutions, and journalists who provide the right to information must intensify the struggle against the assaults of the imperialist European states. Migrant workers, women, and young people must fight as an organized force for our rights and freedoms.”

The confederation’s statement concluded with the call: “Freedom for Heval Arslan, end racist-fascist attacks.”