Bakýrköy Prison for Women and Juvenile – Revolutionary Patriotic Youth (DYG) member 72 young people who were taken into custody with house raids on 11 February 2011 have been jailed for reasons more interesting than each other.

The accusation prepared by prosecutor Ali Haydar charges students with performing Kurdish poem and music, demanding free and mother tongue education and hanging banners defending conscientious objection.

The accusations directed against students are;

-Attending a press conference demanding Kurdish and mother tongue education and joining protest acts against prevention search decision of the university administration,

- Hanging banners defending conscientious objection,

- Opening banners writing “We refuse to be soldiers of the denialist and destructive army”, “We refuse to join the army and shed blood of our brothers”, “We refuse to support slaughters” during a protest act which was attended by Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Istanbul MP Sebahat Tuncel as well.

While Istanbul University Faculty of Communication student Meltem Yaðmur Bovkýr has been held under arrest for allegedly being a member of PKK / KONGRA-GEL, 19 year-old Esra Cebe was arrested only because of her name. Accused Esra Cebe who has not joined even a single democratic protest so far was arrested because of an alleged tape recording in BDP Istanbul Office saying: “I am Esra, coming from Eyüp district.”

* Zeynep Kuray is one of the 106 journalists currently in prison in Turkey