Erdoğan meets ODTÜ students arrested for ‘insulting’ president

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Oct. 16 met with students from the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) who had been arrested for “insulting” the president.

The parents of the students contacted Erdoğan through his lawyer Hüseyin Aydın, according to state-run Anadolu Agency.

The mother of one of the students had sent a letter to the president which paved the way for the meeting, Anadolu Agency said.

The meeting took place at the presidential complex in Ankara.

The students reportedly presented flowers to Erdoğan, while the president gave them Venüs-branded mobile phones, produced by the Turkish company Vestel.

During the meeting, which lasted for 45 minutes in a friendly atmosphere, Erdoğan expressed “uneasiness” about the detentions, daily Hürriyet reported.

On a related note, ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) spokesman Ömer Çelik said on Oct. 16 that Erdoğan’s lawyer would withdraw the lawsuits against the students.

An Ankara court on July 11 arrested the four students who were previously detained on charges of “insulting” Erdoğan for a placard they carried at the graduation ceremony of ODTÜ.

Of the four arrested students, three were carrying the placard, while the other was responsible for the transportation of it to the university.

The students were later released.