In Malatya, four of the six opposition members arrested on Thursday as part of an investigation into the Democratic Society Congress (DTK) have been jailed. They are accused of "membership in a terrorist organization.
A Turkish court in Malatya has ordered the imprisonment of four Kurdish opposition members. The persons concerned are charged with "membership in a terrorist organization. Ali Piro, Hasan Basri Çıplak, Sait Pektaş and Ali Yılmaz were arrested last Thursday in a joint operation by the police and gendarmerie (military police). They are accused of being delegates of the civil society organization Democratic Society Congress.
The DTK has long been criminalized because it is a project proposed by Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan for social organization. DTK functions as an umbrella organization for political parties, civil society organizations, religious communities, and women's and youth organizations. It sees itself as a social counterpart to state structures, which - based on council and grassroots democracy - develops concepts for the self-organization of the population and alternatives for local self-administration. The DTK headquarters in Amed was officially sealed at the end of June after a raid.
