HANDING OVER A KURDISH JOURNALIST TO TURKISH AUTHORITIES BY REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN IS A SHAME AND A BLOW TO FREE JOURNALISM !

Turkish Kurd Journalist Accused of Relations with PKK Extradited from Azerbaijan to Turkey
Kurd, Turkey (Trend Azerbaijan)

The journalist Elif Pelit accused by the law enforcement of Turkey of PKK was extradited from Azerbaijan to Turkey, the representative of the United Nations High Commissariat for Refugees in Azerbaijan William Tol informed Trend.
The employee of the “Mesopomiya” News Agency was detained in Nakchivan Autonomous Republic (NAR), when she tried to illegally pass through the Turkish-Azerbaijani border. Despite that the Court fined her the amount of $2,000 and then released her. She was arrested once again by the employees of the Azerbaijani Interior Ministry at the request of the Turkish law enforcement, forwarded to the Azerbaijani law-enforcement bodies in relation with the extradition of Elif Pelit. The journalist, Kurd by origin, is accused by the Turkish law-enforcement bodies of co-operating with the Kurdish rebel organization PKK. The Azerbaijani Court on Heinous Crimes made the decision in 2004 to deport Elif Pelit to Turkey. Elif Pelit complained about the decision to the higher authority that in 1994-1995, the investigation group opened a criminal case on the co-operation of Elif Pelit with PKK. But the case was annulled due to the absence of evidence. In addition, she is a recognized refugee under the 1951 Refugee Convention in Germany and is a German citizen. Only Germany may require her extradition from Azerbaijan. But the high court instances kept the decision of the initial court authority in force. The representative of the United Nations High Commissariat for Refugees in Azerbaijan also stressed that Elif Pelit’s extradition is contrary to the international conventions. “According to the Convention adopted in 1951, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as German Embassy in Azerbaijan, appears with a position that Azerbaijan is a signatory to the 1951 Convention, which clearly states that refugees are not to be forcibly returned. In mid-October Ms. Pelit was deported to Turkey, which is in clear violation of Azerbaijan’s responsibility and obligations under this convention,” Tol concluded. More than 37,000 people have been killed since 1984 when the PKK took up arms for self-rule in the country's mainly Kurdish southeast of Turkey.trend azThe use of the term "Kurdistan" is vigorously rejected due to its alleged political implications by the Republic of Turkey, which does not recognize the existence of a "Turkish Kurdistan" Southeast Turkey. Others estimate as many as 40 million Kurds live in Big Kurdistan (Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Armenia), which covers an area as big as France, about half of all Kurds which estimate to 20 million live in Turkey.The Kurdish flag flown officially in Iraqi Kurdistan but unofficially flown by Kurds in Armenia. The flag is banned in Iran, Syria, and Turkey where flying it is a criminal offence"