Prosecutors demand up to five years for 118 involved in attack on HDP building in Fethiye

MUĞLA – Doğan News Agency

A large mob marched to the building during the local election campaign on March 9, pelting the newly-inaugurated office with stones. DHA Photo

A prosecutor has demanded jail terms of between two and five years for 118 people involved in an attack on the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) headquarters in the Mediterranean resort town of Fethiye in March.

A large mob marched to the building during the local election campaign on March 9, pelting the newly-inaugurated office with stones. As the crowd grew, the mayor of the town, elected from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), ordered firefighters to remove the HDP sign from the building and to replace it with Turkish flags.

Prosecutors completed their indictment June 10, charging the 118 suspects with “preventing the use of political rights,” “opposing the assembly law,” “resisting police” and “damaging property.” The indictees also include the district head of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Emrah Doğu.

The HDP, formed on October 2013 as an umbrella party encompassing the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) and a number of smaller leftist parties, was the target of several attacks before the local polls.

In February, around 1,000 nationalists attacked the party’s campaign work in Urla in İzmir, while in early march right-wing hoards assaulted the HDP office in the Central Anatolian province of Aksaray.

Other attacks were staged in the Black Sea region, despite the party repeatedly slamming the Interior Ministry for failing to provide the necessary safety measures during the campaign.