The Turkish authorities prevented a PES delegation in Turkey to visit opposition leader Selahattin Demirtaş in prison, in the North-Western town of Edirne. The delegation led by PES president Sergei Stanishev was held a press-conference in the middle of the road outside the prison. The Turkish police and the gendarmerie tried to prevent any contact between the delegation and the media gathered around the prison, but then allowed the improvised press point to take place.

PES president Sergei Stanishev announced: “In the upcoming days, we will have a debate in the European Parliament on the future of EU-Turkey access negotiations. We should discuss the limited scope for Turkey’s accession in the light of its dramatic violations of human rights and in the light of the detentions of legally elected representatives of the Turkish people in the Turkish Parliament”.

After the attempt to visit the prison in Edirne, the delegation visited the editorial offices of the daily Cumhuriyet in Istanbul to show solidarity for the repression it has suffered for its courageous, independent journalism.