16 women detained: We will not bow down

The number of women, who have been detained as part of an investigation based in Ankara, has risen to 16. The TJA issued a statement and said that the detention of women is an attack on women’s struggle.

News Center- Yesterday, a detention order has been reportedly issued against 50 women in 14 cities as part of an investigation launched by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office over terrorism charges. Since yesterday, police have raided 57 homes in 14 cities and detained 16 women. While the prosecutor’s office has issued a confidentiality order on the investigation file, detained women are not allowed to see their lawyers. The detained women are expected to be brought to Ankara.

TJA: The AKP-MHP government attacks the organized power of women

The Free Women’s Movement (Kurdish: Tevgera Jinên Azad –TJA) has issued a written statement demanding the immediate release of the detained women. “A political genocidal operation has been carried out against our activists,” the statement said, “We promise to keep struggling everywhere and to strengthen the women’s struggle for freedom with the philosophy of Jin-Jiyan-Azadî (Women-Life-Freedom).”

Underling that a policy of intimidation has been carried out against the Kurdish Women's Movement and Kurdish Women’s Struggle for freedom, the statement said, “The TJA activists have been detained in many cities, particularly in Amed, Van, Istanbul and Ankara. The mentality using war, exploitation, isolation, poverty and chaos, should know very well that they cannot end the struggle of women by arresting, detaining, targeting and killing them! We, as the TJA, promise to keep struggling everywhere and to strengthen the women’s struggle for freedom with the philosophy of Jin-Jiyan-Azadî.”

‘We did not bow down and we will not bow down’

The members of the TJA held a press conference at the building of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) in Istanbul with the participation of the members of the DBP, the Women’s Council of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), the Women’s Time Association (Turkish: Kadın Zamanı Derneği), Mesopotamia Cultural Center (Turkish: Mezopotamya Kültür Merkezi-MKM) and many women’s organization.

In the statement, the TJA demands the immediate release of the detained women, saying, “The government, which remains silent against gender-based violence, femicide and rape, tries to silence our Jin, Jiyan, Azadi struggle. We did not bow down your dirty war policies or your unlawful detentions and we will now bow down.”