Vol. 438 No. 6
60 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the closure of the Kurdistan newspaper Özgur Gündem by the Turkish authorities and the arrest of the editor and other workers; if he has made or plans to make any representations to the Turkish Government to secure the reopening of the paper and the release of the workers concerned; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I am aware of the closure of the newspaper Özgur Gündem. The editor in chief Ms Gürbetelli Ersöz and eleven journalists from the newspaper are currently on remand awaiting trial.
The normal practice in Turkey for a case such as this is that those charged would be released on bail pending their trial. As the judicial process is still under way in Turkey and the case has not come to Court, I do not feel that it would be appropriate for me to make representations to the Turkish Government in regard to it at this time.
Ireland has, however, made clear on many occasions that we expect Turkey to fulfil its obligations in the field of human rights. The Turkish authorities can be in no doubt about the position of the Irish Government in this regard.
