German embassy slams Turkey for denying access to former HDP co-leader’s case

ANKARA

The German embassy in Ankara has said foreign diplomats have not been allowed to follow a public hearing of former Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ, expressing concerns over the state of the rule of law in Turkey.

“Diplomats from Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and the EU delegation have been trying in vain to be admitted to the public hearing against former HDP co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ in Sincan. In clear breach of Turkish law and the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, foreign diplomats are once again denied access to a public hearing,” read a written statement issued by the German embassy on May 17.

“The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice have been made aware of the situation, but refused to act on the matter. This situation is unacceptable and bodes ill for the current state of the rule of law in this country,” it added.

A statement released by the HDP explained that the foreign diplomats were not allowed to follow the hearing on the grounds that they were not accredited.

Yüksekdağ was arrested on Nov. 4, 2016 over “terrorist propaganda” and “defaming the Turkish Republic” along with nine other HDP lawmakers, and has been in prison since then.