Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) council member Hayri Ateþ, BDP Manisa branch chair Kerem Taylan and BDP Gölmarmara branch chair Naci Kalkan have been sentenced to a total of 4 and a half years imprisonment by the 10th Ýzmir High Criminal Court. The defendants were being accused of making propaganda of the illegal organisation. BDP Manisa branch chair Taylan said the verdict did not have any legal basis and aimed to intimidate the BDP.

In the Kýzýltepe Town of Mardin, four out of the eight detainees have been jailed on charges of being "members of an illegal organisation" and "making propaganda for an illegal organisation". Kýzýltepe deputy mayor Þerife Alp, BDP Kýzýltepe bookkeeper M. Salih Ateþ, KURDÎ-DER executive Hatice Öncü and BDP member Hüseyin Ay have been remanded in custody.

The decision to send them to jail will be protested in a demonstration today in Kýzýltepe.

The pressures on the Kurdish press also continue.

Kurdish Azadiya Welat daily staff members Mahmut Tutal and Abdulbeþir Yapýcý as well as the Association for Research and Development of Kurdish Language (KURDÎ-DER) executive Ýbrahim Halil Donan have been jailed on charges of "making propaganda fore an illegal organisation". They have been sent to the Urfa E Type Closed Prison.

In Hakkari, three out of 13 villagers from Oðlu (Talê) who were taken into custody on January 7 have been jailed on charges of "helping an illegal organisation".