The French State wants to extradite Şefik Sarıkaya to Turkey!
The French State after numerous searches, police custody, withdrawal of the status of political refugees now wants to extradite Şefik Sarıkaya, a political prisoner, to Turkey.
Şefik Sarıkaya has been imprisoned for almost 8 years in France. He is due to be released on 21 April but the Loire prefecture decided on 8 April 2020 to extradite Sarıkaya to Turkey. He will therefore be placed in detention on the day of his release.
Whereas on April 5, during his hearing before the commission for the sentence application, he had learned that he was going to be released on April 21. The French state has always repressed revolutionaries from Turkey through raids, searches, arrests and removal of political refugee status.
Today, they are trying to inflict a double punishment on him by trying to extradite him. The prefecture says that if Şefik Sarıkaya had any fears about his life in Turkey, he could choose a third country. We spoke with his lawyer to get more information.
The lawyer of Şefik Sarıkaya told us that he was going to appeal against the decision of the prefecture of Loire, specifying that Şefik Sarıkaya is a political refugee, his residence permit is valid until 2022, he has a fixed address where he intends to stay after his release. The Committee for Liberty in France has written a statement in which it expresses that France should not extradite a revolutionary and that Şefik Sarıkaya should be released immediately and unconditionally.
We publish the statement of the Comité de Liberté en France :
Şefik Sarıkaya must be released immediately!
Freedom for Şefik Sarıkaya!
The French state wants to extradite the political prisoner Şefik Sarıkaya to Turkey!
Almost 30 years ago, the revolutionary from Turkey Şefik Sarıkaya arrived in France as a political refugee, a status which was granted to him.
On June 9, 2008, he was arrested and imprisoned following a raid organized against revolutionaries from Turkey living in the Paris region. On 7 July 2009, he was conditionally released. Three years later, on 2 November 2012, his trial, which will last 4 weeks, began. On 20 December 2012 the decision of the trial was handed down. Şefik Sarıkaya was then sentenced to 8 years imprisonment. He chose not to go to his last trial, not accepting this heavy sentence he fled to continue to fight against fascism in Turkey. He was arrested on 23 May 2016 in Switzerland, held in police custody for 8 days and extradited to France.
He served his sentence first at the Fresnes penitentiary centre for 16 months, then after a deviation through the South-Francilian penitentiary centre he was taken to the Roanne detention centre. In each prison, our comrade was confronted with isolation and the withdrawal of his rights.
On April 5, 2020, he was brought before the commission for the application of sentences, following which he was informed that he would be released on April 21, 2020. On 7 April, the information visited him at the prison in the Loire. Thinking he had a visiting room, he found himself in front of them without his lawyer. He refused this improvised meeting without his lawyer. On 8 April, he received a letter from the Loire prefecture informing him that he will be taken into custody when he is released from prison to be extradited to his country of origin, Turkey. In the same letter faxed to the prison, the prefecture also gave him the choice of a third host country.
On these facts, Şefik Sarıkaya asked his lawyer to oppose this decision.
Şefik Sarıkaya has been living in France as a political refugee for almost 30 years, all his life he has taken part in the fight against fascism in Turkey. He has been taken into custody 5 times and has spent a total of 14 years in prison. Today he is facing a double sentence, the French state in collaboration with the Turkish fascist government wants to extradite Şefik Sarıkaya.
Şefik Sarıkaya has lived 14 years in French jails. Today he is threatened to be extradited to Turkey, whose President of the Republic proudly proclaims to practice torture.
As a reminder, Ayten Öztürk, a revolutionary from Turkey, had been extradited clandestinely by Lebanon to Turkey on March 13, 2018. She had been kidnapped, locked in a clandestine cell and tortured for 6 months without anyone knowing. Reported missing, she was placed in a legal prison after 6 months, she had 898 injuries on her body.
The French government must stop collaborating with the Turkish fascist state!
Şefik Sarıkaya must not be extradited to Turkey or any other country!
To be revolutionary, to fight against fascism is not a crime but a duty!
Şefik Sarıkaya must be released unconditionally!
Freedom to Şefik Sarıkaya!
French imperialism will be held responsible for everything that may happen to Şefik Sarıkaya in case of extradition!
Comité de Liberté en France
@FransaOzgurlukKomitesi
comitedeliberte@gmail.com
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