Amnesty International calls on the Turkish authorities to end judicial harassment of the Head of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, Tahir Elçi, a pre-eminent lawyer and human rights defender. A criminal investigation for “Making propaganda for a terrorist organisation” was started on 16 October following his statements on national television that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is not a terrorist organisation but an armed political movement with popular support. Amnesty International views the case as an overtly political attack on Tahir Elçi’s right to freedom of expression, targeting him not only for his televised statements but for his work as a lawyer and human rights defender.
