The EUTCC calls upon the French authorities for the immediate release of Adem Uzun, a leading official of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) headquartered in Brussels. His arrest is clearly a political attempt to curry favor with the Turkish authorities who had just complained that France and Germany were not supporting Turkey’s campaign against the PKK and its so-called terrorism in Europe. Far from being a terrorist, Adem Uzun was arrested in Paris where he was preparing to attend a peaceful conference on the Kurdish situation in Syria.
 
The detention of Adem Uzun comes at a most inappropriate time as he was actively campaigning to renew negotiations with Turkey to help solve the long-running Kurdish problem in that state. Indeed Adem Uzun’s arrest appears all the more unfortunate because he was one of the Kurdish officials who earlier had met in Oslo with Turkish officials from 2009 to 2011 in an attempt to start negotiations for peace. Adem Uzun has been working untiring and constructively in the search for a peaceful settlement based on justice and respect for everyone’s rights inside Turkey. Turkish authorities should value theses diplomatic efforts for peace and honour him instead of incarcerating him. Turkey’s negative response and France’s unfortunate support of it has dealt a blow to this initiative for peace and should be immediately corrected. The Kurdish problem in Turkey cannot be solved by arresting and detaining its peace negotiators.
 
 

  Kariane Westrheim   Michael Gunter   Hans Brancheidt   Judge Essa Moosa  
  Chair of EUTCC   Secretary general   Board of Directors   Board of Directors 

19 October, 2012

Kariane Westrheim, [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> , +47 976 42 088

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