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Turkey : 5 Kurdish children released 36 on
trial in Diyarbakir
11.5.2006
By Kemal OZMEN
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23 children are still in prison in relation to
the Diyarbakir incidents. 36 children on trial
facing up to 24 years imprisonment each. Lawyer
Analay says minors held in prison despite lack of
evidence in files, demands an urgent release
BIA (Diyarbakir), Kurdistan-Turkey, - The
Diyarbakir Capital Offences Court for Minors
continues with its hearings of cases brought against
70 children for their alleged involvement in a wave
of violence that swept through the city in March.
The court, hearing the cases against children in
groups, released 5 out of 7 children in a trial on
Wednesday. The total number of children released has
reached in various hearings has so far reached 16
but 23 children are still being held in prison at a
special annex building of the city E-type prison due
to lack of any detention facilities for minors.
The cases launched against 70 children will be heard
at the Diyarbakir court until May 18 in separate
groups.
36 children on trial
36 children, 15 of them under arrest, will face
trial on May 31 on charges of "membership to the PKK,
violating the law on meetings and rallies,
inflicting damage on public buildings and other
property, preventing civil servants from carrying
out their duty" .
The prosecution has demanded 9.5 to 24 years
imprisonment for the children alleged to have been
involved in the incidents in Diyarbakir during which
11 people, including 5 children, were killed when
security forces opened fire on the crowds.
Analay: Lack of evidence
Lawyer Cengis Analay representing some of the
children told Bianet that some children on trial had
not been involved in any of the incidents while
those who had, were not mentally able to understand
the meaning or consequences of any offence they
might have committed.
Analay argued that there was no concrete evidence
indicating that the minors had committed the
offences they were charged with and added "even if
it could be proven that the children carried out
activities, there is no evidence that these have any
form of organic relationship with an organisation".
He said that all rights of the children involved,
with the right to education at top of the list, had
been violated. Analay added that according to
international conventions and its own legislation,
Turkey should have taken measures with regard to the
children that would not have restricted their
freedoms.
Violence should not effect their future
Ankara Bar Association Children's Rights Commission
Chairperson, attorney Turkay Asma speaking on behalf
of the Initiative to End All Forms of Violence
Against Children made a statement on the trial of
the minors previously in which she said:
"Ignoring the benefit and wellbeing of the child, to
violate their right to life, development and
participation and to punish them cannot be accepted
for any reason".
Asma said those children still under arrest should
be released immediately. She said rather than
passing verdicts that would limit their freedom,
children found guilty should be subject to
protective measures that will support them and allow
them to benefit from all of their rights
Bianet org
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