Court declares KCK an armed terrorist group

VAN - Anatolia News Agency

Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals declared the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) a terrorist group yesterday after it upheld the ruling of a court in the eastern province of Van sentencing a member of the organization to nearly eight years in prison.

In its ruling, the appeals court cited a number of reasons as to why the KCK constitutes a terrorist group, including the organization’s connection to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), its goals, strategy, structure, the number of its members, as well as its armed and coercive capabilities.

 The Supreme Court of Appeals also approved the decision by the local court in Van to sentence Fırat Ertunç, 23, to seven years and 11 months in prison on the charges of “being a member of a terrorist organization” and “making propaganda for a terrorist organization.”

The KCK’s charter clearly spells out its ideological, moral, philosophical and organizational links with the PKK, which it aims to transform into a state-like structure, said the appeals court’s decision.
Authorities detained Ertunç during a banned demonstration on Nov. 23, 2009.