Osman Baydemir
Encyclopedia
Osman Baydemir is a Kurdish
politician, lawyer and human rights activist in east Turkey
. He is the current mayor of his home town of Diyarbakır
and member of the Peace and Democracy Party
(BDP).
in Diyarbakır. In 1995 he became the chair of the Diyarbakır branch of the independent Human Rights Association. Between 1995 and 2002 he also was a board member and became vice-president of the association. In February 1999 he became one of the first lawyer who volunteered to defend Abdullah Öcalan
. In 2001 he became a founding member of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT or TİHV Türkiye İnsan Hakları Vakfı). At the general elections
in 2002, he was the candidate of the Democratic People's Party
(DEHAP), but the party failed to reach the 10% election threshold. In 2003, Baydemir spent 6 months in the United States
, to improve his English
. In 2004, he was elected mayor of Diyarbakır.
In May 2005 he married Reyhan Yalçındağ, the deputy chair of the Human Rights Association in Turkey. On April 23, 2006 their son Mirzanyar was born.
of 12 February 2004 there were 200 court cases against him for his human rights activities. The daily Radikal
reported on July 11, 2006 that during the last two years a total of 129 investigations against him had been conducted.
Osman Baydemir has received numerous threats. In June 2001 Amnesty International issued an urgent action on his behalf. After the assassination of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink
in January 2007 Osman Baydemir was among several people who received death threats.
Recent court cases against Osman Baydemir include:
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
politician, lawyer and human rights activist in east Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. He is the current mayor of his home town of Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır is one of the largest cities in southeastern Turkey...
and member of the Peace and Democracy Party
Peace and Democracy Party
The Peace and Democracy Party ) is a political party in the Republic of Turkey. It succeeded the Democratic Society Party following the closure of the latter party for its alleged connections with the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by the EU.The BDP has observer status in the...
(BDP).
Life and career
Osman Baydemir graduated from the Law Faculty at Dicle UniversityDicle University
Dicle University is a public university located on eastern side of the Tigris river. The university is one of the oldest and largest higher education institutions in southeastern Anatolia, Turkey....
in Diyarbakır. In 1995 he became the chair of the Diyarbakır branch of the independent Human Rights Association. Between 1995 and 2002 he also was a board member and became vice-president of the association. In February 1999 he became one of the first lawyer who volunteered to defend Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan , Kurdish founder of the terrorist organization called Kurdistan Workers' Party in 1978.Öcalan was captured in Nairobi and extradited to the Turkish security force, and sentenced to death under Article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code, which concerns the formation of armed gangs...
. In 2001 he became a founding member of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT or TİHV Türkiye İnsan Hakları Vakfı). At the general elections
Turkish general election, 2002
Turkey's 15th general election was held on November 3, 2002 following the collapse of the DSP-MHP-ANAP coalition led by Bülent Ecevit. It was won by the Justice and Development Party , led by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, producing a crushing majority in spite of their winning just 34.3% of the national vote...
in 2002, he was the candidate of the Democratic People's Party
Democratic People's Party (Turkey)
Democratic People's Party was a Kurdish nationalist political party in Turkey. DEHAP was founded 24 October 1997. It was the continuation of the People's Democracy Party , which was banned in March 2003 by the Constitutional Court on the grounds that it supported the Kurdistan Workers Party.At its...
(DEHAP), but the party failed to reach the 10% election threshold. In 2003, Baydemir spent 6 months in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, to improve his English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. In 2004, he was elected mayor of Diyarbakır.
In May 2005 he married Reyhan Yalçındağ, the deputy chair of the Human Rights Association in Turkey. On April 23, 2006 their son Mirzanyar was born.
Charges and threats
As a human rights activist and as a politician, Osman Baydemir has been subjected to persecution on various levels. According to a report of Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
of 12 February 2004 there were 200 court cases against him for his human rights activities. The daily Radikal
Radikal
Radikal is a daily Turkish language newspaper, published in Istanbul. It has been published since 1997 by Aydın Doğan's Doğan Media Group ....
reported on July 11, 2006 that during the last two years a total of 129 investigations against him had been conducted.
Osman Baydemir has received numerous threats. In June 2001 Amnesty International issued an urgent action on his behalf. After the assassination of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink
Hrant Dink
Hrant Dink or Հրանտ Դինք ) was a Turkish citizen of Armenian descent editor, journalist and columnist....
in January 2007 Osman Baydemir was among several people who received death threats.
Recent court cases against Osman Baydemir include:
- In May 2006 Osman Baydemir was charged with an illegal act by providing an ambulance of the municipality for the transport of a corpse. In September 2006 Osman Baydemir was acquitted.
- Osman Baydemir and 55 other mayors of the DTP Party were indicted because in December 2005 they signed a petition to the Danish Prime Minister urging him not to close the Kurdish television station Roj TVRoj TVRoj TV is an international Kurdish satellite television station broadcasting programmes in the Kurmanji, Sorani and Hewrami dialects of the Kurdish language as well as in Zaza, Persian, Arabic, and Turkish.-Programming:...
. They were charged with supporting the PKK. The trial started in September 2006. In April 2007 the prosecutor asked for sentences of 15 years' imprisonment for 52 mayors. - He was prosecuted for violating a Turkish law prohibiting the use of letters not in the Turkish alphabet when he sent out a New Year's greeting in Kurdish which included the letter "W". On April 19, 2007 Diyarbakır Peace Court No. 2 dropped the charges since the Ministry of Justice had not permitted that such a case be heard.
External links
- What do the Kurds Want? (December 2004) petition, signed also by Osman Baydemir.