Turkey Bars Balkan, European Mayors From Visiting Jailed Opposition Leader
Source: Balkan Insight
Turkish authorities on Thursday barred a delegation of European and Balkan mayors who tried to visit jailed Istanbul mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem Imamoglu in prison to express their support.
Imamoglu has been held in Silivri high-security prison near Istanbul for more than five months following his arrest in March in connection with alleged corruption and terrorism-related activities – allegations that have been roundly denied by his supporters as being politically motivated. They say Imamoglu is in jail because he is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s greatest rival.
The delegation, which included four Balkan mayors from Sofia, Bucharest, Athens and Zagreb, intended to meet Imamoglu on Thursday to show their support and present him with a “special democracy award” in prison. But Turkish authorities vetoed the visit, and no official explanation was given for the decision.
After being prevented from visiting Imamoglu, the delegation held a press conference in front of the prison, handing the democracy award instead to Imamoglu’s wife, Dilek.
“European mayors are speaking with one voice. We are a force for democratic resistance. We will continue to stand together with our colleague Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. His courage in defence of democratic principles inspires us all,” said Barcelona mayor Jaume Collboni, who is also vice-president of Eurocities, an alliance of larger European cities.
Sofia’s mayor, Vasil Terziev, also spoke, expressing the Balkan Cities Network’s support for Imamoglu.
“I stand here as president of the B40 Balkan Cities Network, a network established by Ekrem Imamoglu. The gates and walls of this prison are not only a barrier for one man but also for the will of millions of citizens of Istanbul who elected their mayor,” Terziev said.
He said that Balkan mayors also face judicial pressures and political imprisonment in their own countries. “An attack on a democratically elected mayor is an attack on all democratic institutions regardless of the country. That is why our solidarity with Imamoglu…is a democratic and moral responsibility,” Terziev added.
Apart from Collboni and Terziev, the delegation included Zagreb mayor Tomislav Tomasevic, Athens mayor Haris Doukas, Timisoara Mayor Dominic Fritz, Utrecht mayor Sharon Dijksma, Budapest mayor Gergely Szilveszter Karacsony, Paris deputy mayor Arnaud Ngatcha, Madrid international relations general director Jose Francisco Herrera Antonaya and Eurocities secretary-general Andre Sobczak.
The delegation had earlier attended a political rally organised by the Republican People’s Party (CHP), held on Wednesday evening to condemn Imamoglu’s arrest. The mayors were cheered by the large crowd after CHP president Ozgur Ozel’s introduction.
“They came to stand by Mayor Ekrem, welcome to them. Turkey is part of democratic Europe. All of Europe’s democrats are with us,” Ozel said in his address to the crowd.
Hundreds of party members, mayors and city administrators have been arrested since March following multiple corruption and terror investigations launched in CHP-led municipalities.
Imamoglu has been declared a suspect in two investigations into terrorism and corruption. The Istanbul Prosecutor’s Office has described him as “the leader of a crime group”. Imamoglu and the CHP reject the claims and accuse the government of using the courts to eliminate political rivals.
The original article: belongs to Balkan Insight .
