(AGENPARL) - Roma, 16 Dicembre 2022 - (AGENPARL) – ven 16 dicembre 2022 [Image]
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Ref. CG068(2022)
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem ?mamo?lu’s sentence a direct attack on local democracy, says Congress President
Strasbourg, 16 December 2022 – The President of the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, Leendert Verbeek, has made the following statement concerning the prison sentence and political ban imposed on the Mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem ?mamo?lu, by a Turkish court on 14 December:
“I am extremely concerned about this decision, which aims to remove the mayor of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality from political office. This decision not only violates the rights of Ekrem ?mamo?lu himself, but it once again disregards the suffrage expressed by the voters of Istanbul. It is a direct attack on local democracy.
“Freedom of expression, a fundamental right in any democracy, is never more important than during election periods. This decision is therefore very worrying in terms of the state of democracy in Turkey.”
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Institutional Communication Unit
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is an institution of the Council of Europe, responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in its 46 member states. Composed of two chambers – the Chamber of Local Authorities and the Chamber of Regions – and three committees, it brings together 612 elected officials representing more than 130 000 local and regional authorities.
President of the Congress: Leendert Verbeek (Netherlands, SOC/G/PD), President of the Chamber of Local Authorities: Bernd Vöhringer (Germany, EPP/CCE), President of the Chamber of Regions: Harald Sonderegger (Austria, EPP/CCE).
Political groups: Group of Socialists, Greens and Progressive Democrats (SOC/G/PD), Group of the European Peoples Party (EPP/CCE), Independent Liberal and Democratic Group (ILDG), European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR).
Council of Europe/Conseil de l’Europe, Avenue de l’Europe, Strasbourg, . 67000 France