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Islamic Human Rights Commission
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4th February 2002

ALERT UPDATE: Mehmet Ali TEKIN and Nureddin SIRIN, Prisoners of Faith, Turkey

Mehmet Ali Tekin, a journalist, was sentenced to twelve and half years imprisonment for membership of an illegal organisation last month. The organisation was Selam-Tauhid an Islamic publishing house. He is being held at the notorious Eskisehir prison (see appendices of ‘Turkey Unveiled’ IHRC, 1999).

Nureddin Sirin, another journalist, was sentenced to seventeen and a half years imprisonment in 1997 for helping to organise a Quds (Jerusalem) Day Rally. He was sentenced to a further two years for writing an article from prison regarding the Kurdish situation and the Islamic viewpoint of it. Although he was given an amnesty for his original sentence he is still detained by the Turkish authorities on the basis that he is a member of Turkish ‘Hizbullah’, despite evidence from Turkish Security Services that confirm he is not. He has been moved from Bandirma prison to a High Security prison.

IHRC requests campaigners to send letters of support to both men. Their addresses are:

Mehmet Ali Tekin, Eskisehir Ozel Tip Cezaevi, Eskisehir, Turkey

Nureddin Sirin, Bolu F Tipi Cezaevi, A Blok 13/2, Bolu – Turkey[END]