Taner Kılıç was just doing his job, exposing human rights abuses in Turkey as Chair of Amnesty International in that country. But on 9 June 2017, he was thrown into prison on the baseless accusation of being a member of an “armed terrorist organization”. One month later, 10 other human rights defenders, including Amnesty International Turkey’s Director were detained while attending a routine workshop for human rights activists in Istanbul. All are on trial for “terrorism” related crimes – an absurd attempt to choke their human rights activism. Taner is still in prison - and even though the Istanbul 10 have been released thanks to our campaigning, they are still at risk. Taner and the Istanbul 10 are our friends and colleagues. They have dedicated their lives to peacefully protecting other people’s human rights in Turkey and elsewhere. Painting them as criminals leaves everyone vulnerable to the government taking away their personal freedoms. We won’t stop until they’re ALL free. Join our call to free Taner and drop the charges against the Istanbul 10. Let Turkey know the world is watching.
