French FEMEN activists deported after protest in Turkish PM’s constituency

ISTANBUL – Doğan News Agency

DHA Photo

Two FEMEN activists, who had staged a protest at an Istanbul polling station in Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s constituency on March 30, have been deported.

The two women, who are reportedly French citizens, were detained after they showed up in Üsküdar’s Burhaniye Elementary School, where Erdoğan went to vote in a previous election. The activists, who had written “Ban Erdogan” on their topless chests and backs, grabbed and threw away several ballot papers.

The women, identified as Annie Assouan and Elvire Duvelle Charles, have been charged with “insulting the prime minister,” “violating the bans over election propaganda,” and “displaying themselves in a way against decency.”

After their testimonies at the local prosecutor’s office, the women were handed over to police to be deported.

The activists said they were protesting against the latest restrictions on freedoms in Turkey, after the government recently blocked access to Twitter and YouTube.

The two women reportedly came to Turkey two days before the election and learnt which school Erdoğan was due to cast his vote. They did not intend to insult the prime minister, but only wrote “Ban Erdoğan” on their bodies to protest him, they added.

FEMEN activists reportedly said they read in the international media that people who thought differently from the government were currently under pressure in Turkey.