Through the Norwegian P.E.N. Centre, the Norwegian branch of International P.E.N., NFFE, Oslo, has received information that, on Thursday 30 March 2000, Turkish police patrols confiscated the books of internationally known and highly respected novelist and essayist Mehmed Uzun from bookstores in Ankara, Diyarbakir and other Turkish cities. Neither Uzun himself, nor his lawyer or […]
Through the Norwegian P.E.N. Centre, the Norwegian branch of International
P.E.N., NFFE, Oslo, has received information that, on Thursday 30 March 2000, Turkish police patrols confiscated the books of internationally known and highly respected novelist and essayist Mehmed Uzun from bookstores in Ankara, Diyarbakir and other Turkish cities.
Neither Uzun himself, nor his lawyer or publisher had received any advance information prior to the police action. The frightened and astonished booksellers themselves informed Uzun´s publisher that police had emptied their bookstores of all of Uzun´s books. According to an article in the Swedish daily “Dagens Nyheter”, police told the booksellers that they were carrying out a 4 February decision of the Diyarbakirs security court, stating that all of Uzun´s books in Turkish as well as Kurdish should be confiscated. Uzun fled to Sweden in 1977 after he had been
imprisoned and tortured by Turkish authorities.
The court´s decision followed Uzun´s participation earlier this year at a Diyarbakir conference focusing on new Kurdish trends in language and literature, drawing an alleged 6.000 participants. According to the Turkish constitution, the Kurdish language is strictly prohibited in education, mass media and other public use.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the Turkish embassy in your country:
– stating that you find this news deeply shocking and profoundly deplorable
– noting that you cannot regard this attack against one of Europe´s foremost writers´ rights to freedom of expression as anything other than a coarse infraction against the European and international covenants and conventions on human rights to which Turkey is a signatory and has thus pledged to respect
– demanding that Uzunâs books be immediately restored to the places from which they were confiscated
Send letters to the authorities in your country:
– asking that they address this matter with Turkish authorities, if possible at the current session of the UN Human Rights Commission´s sessions in Geneva
In Canada, appeals can be addressed to:
His Excellency Erhan Oyut, Ambassador
Embassy of the Republic of Turkey
197 Wurtemburg Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1N 8L9
Tel: +613 789 4044
Fax: +613 789 3442
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
