HDP Group Deputy Chair İdris Baluken Released

Click to read the article in Turkish/Kurdish

Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Group Deputy Chair and the party’s Diyarbakır MP İdris Baluken was released after a trial today (January 30). Baluken had been in custody since November 4, 2016.

HDP Van MP Nadir Yıldırım was detained while observing the hearing in the Diyarbakır 8th Heavy Penal Court. Yıldırım was later released.

The court based its decision to discharge Baluken on criteria set forth by the Constitutional Court, which regulate the arrests of deputies.

HDP Adana MP Meral Danış Beştaş announced Baluken’s release on Twitter.

10 of 59 HDP MPs arrested

HDP Co-Chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ, Şırnak MPs Ferhat Encü, Leyla Birlik, Hakkari MPs Selma Irmak, Abdullah Zeydan, Diyarbakır MPs İdris Baluken, Nursel Aydoğan, Ziya Pir, İmam Taşçıer, Ankara MP Sırrı Süreyya Önder and Mardin MP Gülser Yıldırım were taken into custody on November 4. Yüksekdağ, Demirtaş, Baluken, Birlik, Irmak, Aydoğan, Yıldırım, Zeydan and Encü were arrested on the same day.

Pir, Taşçıer and Önder were later released on probation.

HDP Hakkari MP Akdoğan was arrested on November 7.

HDP Group Deputy Chair Çağlar Demirel and HDP Siirt MP Besime Konca were arrested on December 13, which increased the number of arrested HDP MPs to 12.

HDP İstanbul MP Filiz Kerestecioğlu and HDP Muş MP Ahmet Yıldırım were replaced for the arrested group deputy chairs.

Şırnak MP Leyla Birlik was released on January 4, 2017.

Baluken was discharged on January 30, 2017.

With Baluken’s release, the number of imprisoned HDP MPs dropped to 10. (ÇT/TK)