Turkey & Free Assange: Ten years in the past in the present day on Sunday sixteenth June 2013 I lined two protests in London round nations and points nonetheless within the information now. The primary was demanding an finish to human rights abuses in Turkey and for Erdogan to go – and he has lately gained one other time period in workplace and his authoritarian regime continues. It was additionally the primary anniversary of Julian Assange taking refuge within the Eduadorian Embassy and Assange remains to be confined, now in Belmarsh jail, nonetheless more likely to be extradited to spend the remainder of his life in US prisons for publishing particulars of US conflict crimes.
Turks proceed battle – Turkish Embassy to Downing St
Round a thousand British Turks met reverse the London Embassy and marched to a rally reverse Downing St. Their march was in solidarity with mass rallies in Turkey a day earlier than a basic strike there known as by the nation’s largest union representing public sector staff as a response to the brutality utilized in clearing Gezi Park.
President Erdogan and his satirically named Justice and Growth Social gathering AKP had brutally repressed earlier peaceable protests in Turkey in Gezi Park, Taksim Sq. and elsewhere within the nation. A number of the protesters wore badges of protesters shot by police in demonstrations.
This was a really patriotic protest, many carrying Turkish flags and singing Turkish songs. The trendy Turkish state was established by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk within the Nineteen Twenties as a secular and democratic state and plenty of Turks ft the AKP governments underneath Erdogan sine 2002 have severely eroded these rules.
Since 2002 they’ve imposed their conservative Islamic views on the nation and have constructed an additional 17,000 mosques. Authoritarian measure have restricted the sale of alohol and exhibits of public affection.
The federal government had enacted strict management over Turkish media and imprisoned extra journalists than some other nation on this planet. Opponents of the federal government are accused of treason and imprisoned with out proof, whereas court docket hearings can take years. Many had been held with out cost for five years or extra.
It stays inconceivable to have honest elections in Turkey as the federal government workout routines nearly full management of the media. In Might 2023 Erdogan was re-elected president with 52% of the vote towards 48% for his opponent though there had been hopes he may lose.
Extra at Turks proceed fight.
Ready for Assange – Ecuadorian embassy, Knightsbridge
Sunday sixteenth June 2013 marked precisely a 12 months since Julian Assange had been given asylum on the Ecuadorian embassy and I joined a crowd of supporters ready for him to seem on the balcony and calling from launch of all whistle-blowers.
The UK authorities had refused to permit him passage to Ecuador and as a substitute had spent over £3m of taxpayers money over a continuing police presence exterior the embassy, which occupies only some rooms within the constructing.
The occasion was organised by Veterans for Peace UK, and so they linked Assange with others ‘dealing with persecution for exposing the true nature of conflict and the state‘, Edward Snowden and Bradley Manning. Supporters view Assange, Manning and Snowden as heroes who must be launched quite than prosecuted.
The choice of Sweden to pursue the extradition of Assange on costs associated to his sexual actions seems to have been politically motivated to make it simpler for him to be transferred to the USA.
Amongst these on the protest have been girls from Girls Towards Rape who made clear they have been towards his extradition, accusing politicians of utilizing “as soon as once more girls’s fury & frustration on the prevalence of rape & different violences” to advance their very own functions.
The protest continued with a protest on the pavement exterior the embassy holding up indicators with the message ‘F R E E A S S A N G E’. They went again acrooss to the pavement reverse after a couple of minutes when politely requested to take action by police. A variety of South People entertained with songs, however there was no signal of Assange.
It had been recommended after I arrived that he would come out at round 5pm, however at the moment the embassy informed press he was sleeping and so they hoped he would come out at 6pm. I made a decision there was little level in my ready and left.
Following a change in authorities in Ecuador police have been invited inside to arrest Assange in April 2019. Since then he has been saved, a lot of the time in isolation, within the excessive safety Belmarsh jail in Thamesmead. After quite a few authorized instances and appeals, ten days in the past on sixth June 2023 he misplaced his enchantment towards extradition.
Extra at Ready for Assange.
Tags: Assange, asylum, Ataturk, Belmarsh, Bradley Manning, brutal repression, censorship, Chelsea Manning, civil rights, democracy, Ecuador, Edward Snowden, Erdogan, free Assange, Gezi Park, human rights, human rights abuses, imprisonment, Islamic views, Julian Assange, London, march, peaceable protest, peter Marshall, police, political asylum, protest, secular state, Taksim Sq., treason, Turkey, Veterans for Peace UK
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