Support for imprisoned journalists from Ümit Özdağ: 'We will hold protests all over Turkey'

Zafer Party Chairman Prof. Dr. Ümit Özdağ held a press conference in front of Sincan Closed Prison. Criticizing the arrest of journalists in harsh terms, Özdağ said, "We will keep this issue on the agenda every day. We will hold protests all over Turkey until we get these patriots out of prison; you cannot silence us."

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Support for imprisoned journalists from Ümit Özdağ: 'We will hold protests all over Turkey'

Zafer Party Chairman Ümit Özdağ held a press conference in front of Sincan Closed Prison regarding the ongoing detention of Zafer Party Founders' Board member Eray Ertürk, Ajans Muhbir X account managers Süha Çardaklı and Serkan Kafkas, and Ambargo TV volunteers Ramin Saeidi, Adem Enes Gezer, Ümit Yasin Perinçek, Murat Teker and Serdar Sönmez.

"Between 1918 and 1922, it was a crime to object to the presence of occupiers in Turkey and the occupation regime. In 2023, however, it has become a crime to object to the presence of 13 million refugees and illegal migrants in Turkey, which continues to grow and worsen," said Özdağ, continuing his remarks as follows:

"Turkish nationalists and Atatürkists were taken from their homes and arrested in police operations carried out in the early hours of the morning, without resorting to any violence or even taking to the streets, simply because they wanted the 13 million refugees and illegal migrants to return to their homelands and opposed the spending of 11 billion dollars a year on refugees. It has been over two months. What is their crime? Spreading fake news.

Who decides that the news is fake? Based on what is it fake? If it is fake according to the Directorate of Communications, then forget it. Inciting the public to hatred and enmity; who has been incited to hatred and enmity because of the tweets posted or news reported by these patriots, and what action have they taken? There is no action at all."

'THEY HAVE NO CRIME OTHER THAN LOVING THIS COUNTRY'

"Despite dozens of police officers being injured and one officer suffering a fractured skull during incidents in Istanbul involving individuals who encouraged the public to raid foreign consulates, and despite workplaces being burned and destroyed, not the slightest legal action was taken against the person who made this call. We filed a criminal complaint against the provocateur who said 'Hatay is Arab.' The prosecutor issued a decision of non-prosecution. Look, what is being done has now reached the level of injustice against the Turkish nation.

This is political persecution against patriots, Atatürkists, and Turkish Nationalists who defend the rights of the Turkish Nation. If our friends who have been detained for 2 months had committed this crime and been convicted, this is how long they would have served anyway. How will you look them in the face when they are acquitted and released tomorrow? You also know that the patriots you have arrested have no crime other than loving this country.

We have said it before; you cannot make us give up on loving Turkey and loving the Turkish Nation with these politicized legal operations."

'DO YOU WANT TO SILENCE US?'

Emphasizing that they will not take a step back, Özdağ concluded his remarks by saying, "Do you want to silence us? You can kill us. But you cannot silence us! We will not give up on loving this country. Our friends currently lying in Sincan Closed Prison behind us will not give up on loving their country just because you have imprisoned them. They will love it even more.

From now on, as the Zafer Party, we have waited patiently on this issue. We will keep it on the agenda every day. You will see; we will hold demonstrations for our friends every day. We will hold protests all over Turkey. Until we get these patriots out of prison."

News Source: 12punto