Incident during the plenary session of the European Parliament

 Many years I worked as an interpreter for the European Parliament and have witnessed first hand several incidents. Truth is that the current President Martin Schulz has had his share of insults hurled at him during his long standing in the socialist group of the European Parliament and now also as the president of the European Parliament. Today a Greek member, member of the extreme right group in the European Parliament where also Marine Le Pen is a member, insulted the Turks with what one can only call racist and filled with vile comments. Hate speech would be the correct term for it. Martin Schulz asked the member to leave the room. The member refused and here, on the link below you can see what happened and it needs no more comment from me except: Thank you Martin Schulz for not allowing blatant racism, and for upholding the norms of decency.    

Watch it here:
 https://youtu.be/kO4-RYvb9Uw 

Master Muharrem Erbey

Here you see a picture of the happy times of Mater Huharrem Erbey. He is surrounded by his wife and two sons, all looking happy and content together. He is a highly respected human rights lawyer, He compiled the reports on disappearances, cases of torture and extra-judicial killings. He represented individuals on all court levels, including the European Court of Human Rights.

He also is a published author, editor and columnist. In 2007 Erbey

co-edited a publication of Kurdish and Turkish stories by 35 authors. It was distributed for free by Diyarbakir Metropolitan Municipality to the local people. The mayor then was prosecuted for doing so under a law which prohibited the use of the Kurdish alphabet and has in the mean time been abolished. Master Erbey defended the mayor and landed in jail himself.

He is deeply unhappy in jail, longs for freedom and misses his family as much as they miss him. Life in prison is unhealthy, so he also physically is suffering. I am convinced that Muharrem never used violence, nor incited people to use violence.  In his own words:"I have been incarcerated for the last three years… because of the speeches I have made on human rights and the peaceful resolution of the Kurdish issue at parliaments in Britain, Sweden, Belgium and at the UN in Geneva. My speeches and comments never contained words of violence."

Please take action!
There are a number of actions that PEN members can take:
 .Write to your country’s Turkish ambassador (contact details of Turkish embassies worldwide can be found here)
·for European centres: Raise Erbey’s case with your Member of European Parliament (MEP)
·Write letters and postcards of support to Muharrem Erbey in prison. Such correspondence can provide an important psychological lift and has been greatly appreciated by Muharrem Erbey in the past
· Write blog pieces about Muharrem Erbey’s case and share these on social media, particularly around the date of his next trial session on January13, 2014.
·Write articles and letters that will raise awareness of Muharrem Erbey’s case in your local and national media.


Muharrem Erbey’s Prison Address
Muharrem Erbey
Diyarbakır D Tipi Yüksek Güvenlikli Kapalı Ceza İnfaz Kurumu
Diyarbakır
Turkey