Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Seán Crowe TD, yesterday met with a Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) activist to discuss the political repression the party is facing in Turkey, as well as the Turkish Government’s severe violations of international and human rights law.

Crowe had planned to meet with a HDP MP but he is currently stranded in Brussels because his passport was revoked by the Turkish authorities.

Deputy Seán Crowe said:

“In a further dramatic escalation on the continued crackdown on democratic politics, and civic society generally in Turkey, 11 Members of Parliament and the 2 Co-Chairs of the leftist and pro-Kurdish HDP were recently arrested.

“Yesterday I was due to discuss this latest escalation and the Turkish Government’s severe violations of international and human rights law with Faysal Sariyildiz, a HDP MP for Sirnex Province. Worryingly Faysal is currently stranded in Brussels because the Turkish authorities have revoked his passport and issued a warrant for his arrest.

“Faysal was carrying out important legal and diplomatic work for the HDP and has been travelling to European capitals detailing the mass killing of Kurdish civilians by the Turkish military in his home city of Cizre. The cancelling of his passport would appear to be a crude attempt to silence that work.

“Yesterday I met with one of his parliamentary advisers and gave a commitment to raise his case, and the wider human rights abuses and repression in Turkey, with the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs in the Dáil.

“The anti-democratic policies of the Turkish government are unjust, unacceptable, and a violation of human rights. Under the cover of security they are pushing the country further along the path to a dictatorship and the very real possibility of a civil war.”

ENDS