Good News ! Taner Kılıç Released

After over 432 days behind bars, my dear colleague and Honorary Chair of Amnesty Turkey, Taner Kılıç has been freed from prison.

I could not be more overjoyed. It has taken a year of tireless campaigning, and millions of people like you all over the world speaking out to get here.

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There’s no doubt that the huge amount of pressure put on the Turkish authorities has helped to secure Taner’s release. Today, finally, he can be reunited with his wife and daughters.

Taner was arrested last summer and sent to jail, where he has languished ever since. Ten other activists known as ‘The Istanbul 10’, including Amnesty Turkey’s Director İdil Eser, were locked up a month later. Eight of them were held for almost four months before being released on bail, but Taner remained behind bars – until now.

But they all still face the same baseless charge of involvement with “a terrorist organisation” – a ridiculous claim made time and time again by the Turkish government to justify its attempt to silence human rights defenders.

Today we celebrate. But tomorrow, re-energised, we will continue our fight to have all charges dropped against Taner, the Istanbul 10, and all other innocent victims wrongfully caught up in the vicious human rights crackdown currently ongoing in Turkey.

Every day, ordinary people like Taner Kılıç use their extraordinary passion to stand up for freedom and equality: for their communities, for themselves, for you.

In solidarity,

Kate Allen – Director
Amnesty International UK