Court Upholds 15-Year Prison Sentence To Former DEP Deputies

After the court upheld the original sentences (of 15 years) given in 1994 to Leyla Zana, Hatip Dicle, Orhan Dogan and Selim Sadak, their atorney Yusuf Alatas said that he will appeal the verdict, which was taken after 13 re-trials, upon the ruling of ECHR.Former members of ethnic Democracy Party, Leyla Zana, Dicle and Dogan will remain in prison until March 2005 and Selim Sadak until October 2005, as stipulated in their original ruling which was taken on grounds that they collaborated with terror organization PKK." Luigi Vinci, the representative of the European Parliament said that the rights of the Kurdish minority in Turkey were violated and this hearing had been a big shame to Turkey, ECHR and EU. Vinci vowed that; this business has not ended here. Our fight will continue inside and outside Turkey. We call Turkey to end this disgraceful case. These courts of a Fascist rule, still exist in Turkey. We demand a pardon from the Turkish government for political convicts. It is up to the Turkish people and Parliament to enterEU. The 14th hearing Wednesday was not attended by the four defendants who are boycotting the trials. Those present included; attorneys of the former deputies, ethnic DEHAP's leader Tuncay Bakirhan, Italian deputy Luici Vinci representing EP, Members of the International Jurists and Judges Independence Center, members of NGOs and press members. The original sentence about the four was given on grounds of "Being members of an illegal organization."Â