Parliamentarian from Sweden Nominates Selahattin Demirtaş for Nobel Peace Prize

Click to read the article in Turkish

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) former Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş, who has been behind bars for more than two years, has been nominated for Nobel Peace Prize. The proposal for Demirtaş's nomination has been made by Thomas Hammarberg, a parliamentarian from Sweden.

Regarding his nomination, legist Kerem Altıparmak has stated, "Thomas Hammarberg, who made this proposal, is not an ordinary MP. He is former Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights and former Secretary General of Amnesty International. During his secretariat, the organization received the Nobel Peace Prize. That is why, it is a very important initiative."

Being arrested on November 4, 2016, Selahattin Demirtaş has still been held in Edirne Type F Prison.

"He reminds the importance of peace struggle"

Hammarberg has proposed the nomination of Selahattin Demirtaş for the Nobel Peace Prize in a letter. In his letter, the parliamentarian has wrote,

"For the last 12 years, Selahattin Demirtaş has taken on a crucial role in almost every attempt to establish peace between the Turks and Kurds in Turkey as well as to defend and promote the rights of minorities, women, LGBTI individuals and democracy. As a prominent Kurdish politician, he has devoted his life to these causes.

"In a country where authoritarianism, sectarian conflicts and a defective legal system prevail and there is no freedom of expression or fundamental human rights, Demirtaş has always been determined to build a society where the people of Turkey could live in peace.

"He was unyielding and brave in his works to resolve the Kurdish question. He has worked to end the war against the Kurds in Turkey and Syria.

"Alhough Demritaş has been behind bars, he has been reminding us of the fact that the struggle for peace is now far more important than it has ever been before. For all these reasons, I respectfully nominate Selahattin Demirtaş for the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize."

About Thomas Hammarberg

Thomas Hammarberg is a parliamentarian and human rights defender from Sweden. He held the post of Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights in Strasbourg from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2012.

Prior to his appointment, he had spent several decades working on the advancement of human rights in Europe and worldwide. He had been Secretary General of the Stockholm-based Olof Palme International Center, Ambassador of the Swedish Government on Humanitarian Affairs, the Secretary General of the NGO "Save the Children Sweden", and Secretary General of Amnesty International. He received on behalf of Amnesty International the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977.

Hammarberg has published widely on various human rights issues, and particularly on the rights of the child, refugee policy, minority issues, xenophobia, islamophobia, Roma rights, LGBT rights in Europe as well as international affairs and security. He is also well known for his presentations and lectures on human rights at various intergovernmental and academic institutions. As Commissioner he has published a series of "Viewpoint" articles on human rights issues in Europe on the institution's website. He regularly publishes comments focusing on main human rights issues. (AS/SD)