CoE/Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Türkiye: Congress Chief Urges Halt to Opposition Purge
“I deplore in the strongest terms the continued purge of opposition mayors in Türkiye, with the suspension from office of 15 more mayors – adding to almost 150 mayors dismissed and, in many cases, detained since 2016, including several Congress members,” stated today Marc Cools, President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.
“This action undermines democracy and denies millions of people a democratic voice in Türkiye. In March, the Congress called on the Turkish authorities to stop prosecuting and detaining elected representatives from opposition parties; release current detainees, including Mayor of the country’s largest city, Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu; guarantee the rights of the defence and refrain from making extensive use of pre-trial detention when clear evidence of reasonable suspicion is missing.
“I reiterate this call and urge the Turkish authorities to abide by the principles of the European Charter of Local Self-Government which Türkiye ratified in 1992. During my next exchange of views with the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in September, I intend to discuss possible action to end this purge and to engage in dialogue with Türkiye as a Council of Europe member state in order to make sure that democratic norms and standards in this country are respected,” said President Cools.
https://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/-/t%C3%BCrkiye-congress-president-calls-for-action-to-stop-the-purge-of-opposition-mayors