Turkey – Yeni Demokrasi: Three Grup Yorum Members Released from Custody

Source: Yeni Demokrasi

Three members of the Turkish political and protest band Grup Yorum, Cem Dursun, Merve Kurt and Rıdvan Akbaş, were released following a hearing on November 11 at Istanbul’s 13th High Criminal Court, Yeni Demokrasi reports. Their release means they are no longer being held in custody, but their cases are still on-going.

The release comes in the middle of protests over prison conditions. Dursun had been on an indefinite hunger strike for 197 days. In earlier coverage, Yeni Demokrasi reported that his demands included an end to isolation and restrictions on prisoners’ rights, including limits on mail, petitions and access to certain items. Reports also described prisoners being held in small cells for much of the day.

Group Yorum members Cemil Kurt, Hakan İnci, and Muharrem Cengiz are still imprisoned, and are continuing their indefinite hunger strike.