Exchanging Kurdish songs on Facebook is a crime in Turkey
The newspaper pointed out that the Turkish prosecution wanted to imprison a 17-year-old Kurdish boy for 40 years after he was accused of eight charges, including participating in illegal demonstrations and the exchange of Kurdish songs on Facebook.
The teenager, known only by his initials, A.K., will attend the Juvenile Court in Mersin on May 16 after he was arrested on October 30, 2011.
The teenager faces eight charges, namely belonging to a terrorist organization (referring to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Union in Turkey), violating the law governing demonstrations, committing crimes against public property, possessing explosives, promoting a terrorist organization, using weapons during demonstrations, violation the freedom of action, resisting the police and organizing events on behalf of a terrorist organization.
The Juvenile Court added another charge to the list of the prosecution on May 12 - exchanging songs on Facebook.
Mediapart quoted defense lawyer Tugay Bek as saying that the teenager rejected the charges against him, adding, "I demand the release of my client who is not involved in any event."
According to Mediapart, Kurdish children are often subjected to arrests and harsh sentences in Turkey.
The newspaper said that on April 9 the prosecution demanded the imprisonment of a 17-year-old Kurdish boy for 55 years for participating in "illegal" demonstrations in Mersin. This charge of the prosecution relied on a secret testimony.
AKnews
