Human Rights Defender Coşkun Selçuk must be Released!

Being the President of İskenderun Branch of the Human Rights Association (IHD), Coşkun Selçuk together with numerous political party and NGO members were taken into custody from their houses at dawn on 18 January 2017.

No matter where, the human rights defenders have the rights to peacefully and effectively protest any kind of violation of human rights, reveal the violations when occurred and support the victims.

The Human Rights Association (IHD) is a 31-year organisation endeavouring for the protection and development of the human rights in Turkey and the world, and announcement of the violations exposed to the individuals. Our friend Coşkun Selçuk is one of the thousands of human rights defenders within this organisation.

It is worrying to see that such repressions as detentions and arrests imposed against human rights defenders in the recent months are on the increase.

As human rights defenders, we invite once again the public prosecutors performing the detentions and arrests to abide by the UN Declaration on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and we demand that the president of İskenderun Branch of IHD, Coşkun Selçuk be released.

HUMAN RIGHTS ASSOCIATION