Concerning the recently increasing detentions, KESK (Confederation of Public Workers Unions) stated; “We are moving towards the days of the 80 military putsch when stadiums, schools and fields swarmed with detainees.

KESK Board of Management has made a written statement regarding the increasing the detention and arrests in recent days. Underlining that about hundreds of people are taken into custody every day and promptly arrested at special courts in a process when the agenda focuses on the coming elections, the statement said; “The fact that almost all of the detainees are from the left, socialist, laborer and Kurdish opposition circles show that this is an operation of suppression.”

The statement reminded the detention of 39 people in Istanbul including the members of political band Yorum and continued as follows; “The coincidence of the detentions with a process when democracy and free education-oriented activities are organized against poverty, unemployment, and urban transformation shows that the attack is directed to these demands. As a matter of fact, all kinds of actions and events with the same content are intended to be prevented with the government’s various constraint methods.”

The statement, emphasizing that Democratic demands activities mustn’t be the justification for the detentions, demanded the release of detainees and the retirement of special courts.

Translation: Berna Ozgencil