Abdullah Demirbaş
Encyclopedia
Abdullah Demirbaş is mayor of the municipality of Sur in the city of Diyarbakir, Southeast Turkey, of the Peace and Democracy Party
(BDP).
After graduating in sociology at Firat University
in Elazig
, Abdullah Demirbas worked as a philosophy teacher from 1987 to 2007, contributing to setting up the Mardin
Branch of the Turkish Union of Teachers
.
When he was elected as Mayor of Sur in 2004, he made a commitment to his electorate to serve them in their own languages.
In 2007 he was removed from his functions, together with the entire municipal council, for using the Kurdish language
in official business.
He was accused of the misuse of municipal resources, having printed a children’s book and tourist brochures in Kurdish.
The Congress of the Council of Europe took up his case in its 2007 report and Recommendation 229 on Local Democracy in Turkey.
In the local elections of March 2009
, he was re-elected with a stronger majority. However, the prosecutions against him continued and in May 2009 he was sentenced to 2 years in jail for language crimes.
He is a campaigner for minority languages and has called on Turkey to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
.
His latest project - "A Story for each night and every house is a School" - aims to publish 365 stories for children in Kurdish and other minority languages.
A court case against him concerning this project was dropped in September 2009.
On 24 December 2009 he was detained as part of a widespread crackdown against members of the former DTP party. On 30 December he issued an open letter from prison pleading for medical treatment and drawing attention to the political nature of his arrest.
He was released on 15 May 2010 on medical grounds.
In 2011 the Turkish press reported that his life was at risk because a travel ban imposed by the authorities prevented him from getting the medical care that he needed.
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).
After graduating in sociology at Firat University
Firat University
Firat University is one of the biggest academical institutions in the East of Turkey, established in 1975 in Elazig. It has twelve faculties,four institutes,three highs schools, one state conservatory and nine vocational high schools and 21 research center with a strong emphasis on scientific and...
in Elazig
Elazig
Elâzığ is a city in Eastern Anatolia, Turkey and the seat of Elâzığ Province. It has a population of331,479 according to the 2010 census, and the plain on which the city extends has an altitude of 1067 metres....
, Abdullah Demirbas worked as a philosophy teacher from 1987 to 2007, contributing to setting up the Mardin
Mardin
Mardin is a city in southeastern Turkey. The capital of Mardin Province, it is known for its Arabic-like architecture, and for its strategic location on a rocky mountain overlooking the plains of northern Syria.-History:...
Branch of the Turkish Union of Teachers
Türk Egitim Sen
Eğitim Sen is a trade union of teachers and other education workers in Turkey. It was founded on January 23, 1995...
.
When he was elected as Mayor of Sur in 2004, he made a commitment to his electorate to serve them in their own languages.
In 2007 he was removed from his functions, together with the entire municipal council, for using the Kurdish language
Kurdish language
Kurdish is a dialect continuum spoken by the Kurds in western Asia. It is part of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian group of Indo-European languages....
in official business.
He was accused of the misuse of municipal resources, having printed a children’s book and tourist brochures in Kurdish.
The Congress of the Council of Europe took up his case in its 2007 report and Recommendation 229 on Local Democracy in Turkey.
In the local elections of March 2009
Turkish local elections, 2009
Turkey held local elections on 29 March 2009. The overal winner was the ruling party Justice and Development Party, although the party saw a decline in its vote relative to the 2007 general election...
, he was re-elected with a stronger majority. However, the prosecutions against him continued and in May 2009 he was sentenced to 2 years in jail for language crimes.
He is a campaigner for minority languages and has called on Turkey to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is a European treaty adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe...
.
His latest project - "A Story for each night and every house is a School" - aims to publish 365 stories for children in Kurdish and other minority languages.
A court case against him concerning this project was dropped in September 2009.
On 24 December 2009 he was detained as part of a widespread crackdown against members of the former DTP party. On 30 December he issued an open letter from prison pleading for medical treatment and drawing attention to the political nature of his arrest.
He was released on 15 May 2010 on medical grounds.
In 2011 the Turkish press reported that his life was at risk because a travel ban imposed by the authorities prevented him from getting the medical care that he needed.