Dear Colleagues,
Herewith I personally firmly endorse your
Open letter of support for “Academics for Peace”
in Turkey, on behalf of the
*Easdale Foundation for Labour Research* (*EMAR*), attached below, to
demand academic freedom and the release of all engaged academics,
intellectuals and journalists currently in prison in Turkey,
and will forward it to various social media networks.

In solidariry with "Academics for Peace"!
Prof. Azril Bacal Roij
Board Member, Research Committee 10 on "Participation, Organizational
Democracy and Self-Managemente," International Sociological Association
(ISA), Red "Universidad y Compromiso Social," Seville, Spain,
IRIPAZ-Guatemala, Fôr AGNI, Uppsala, Sweden.
______

On Fri, Jan 29, 2016 at 10:21 PM, ISMAILBUYUKAKAN <
buyukakan.ismail@...> wrote:

> Open letter of support for “Academics for Peace” in Turkey
>
> On behalf of *Easdale Foundation for Labour Research* (*EMAR*), we strongly
> oppose the recent ongoing attacks on academic freedom in Turkey.
>
> More than 1,200 academics from 90 Turkish universities, “Academics for
> Peace”, signed a statement, “We will not be a party to this crime”, calling
> on the Turkish state to cease hostilities against its Kurdish citizens.
> Since the publication of this call for peace, these academics have been
> subject to a strong sustained campaign of abuse and violence from both the
> Turkish state and its supporters.
>
> In recent speeches, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has publicly denounced
> these academics, accusing them of “treason” and of forming a “fifth
> column” of foreign powers trying to undermine Turkey’s national security. Subsequently,
> prosecutors have begun proceedings to charge all 1,128 of the original
> signatories with “propagandising for a terrorist organization” and “overtly
> insulting the Turkish nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, Grand
> National Assembly of Turkey, the Government of Republic of Turkey and the
> judicial organs of the state”. If convicted of these charges they could
> face 1-5 years imprisonment.  Signatories have also been publicly exposed
> in the press and social media by government supporters and nationalists.
> Many of the signatories also face disciplinary proceedings and possible
> sackings from their institutions. Others have already been suspended or
> fired by their own university administrations.
>
> Turkish state has a long and shameful history of mistreating and even
> murdering intellectuals, critical academics and journalists (since the time
> of Ottoman Empire). Recent campaign of intimidation by Turkish
> authorities against the signatories is yet another example of the growing
> intolerance for critical voices and the deepening authoritarianism of the
> Turkish state in the country with increasingly serious consequences for
> freedom of expression.  This includes not only attacks against academics
> but also the continuing imprisonment and deaths of journalists, lawyers and
> activists.  Right now, there are currently 32 journalists in prison for
> covering accurate news.
>
>
>
> We call on the Turkish government to withdraw its prosecutions,
> immediately release all those imprisoned and commit to the principles of
> academic freedom and free speech. We stand in solidarity with these brave
> academics and pledge our strong support through the means available to us.
>
>
>
> On behalf of EMAR
>
> Ali Aksoy                    Umran Baylik              Ismail
> Buyukakan                   Hamit Ersozoglu Bulent Gokay
>             Mikail Kaya                Mumin
> Koseoglu
>
> www.emarvakfi.org
>
>
>

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