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KURDISTAN Turkey: Killed for requesting a Kurdish song A weekend in December 2011 ended tragically when a man was brutally murdered after he requested that musicians in a bar sing a folksong in Zaza Kurdish, his native language 03 January 2012 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç in court once again Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç is the target of seven investigations and two trials due to speeches he held during his campaign for the general elections in June 2011 16 December 2011 Turkey: Campaign for Kurdish singer and activist Gazin (Raziye Kızıl) A petition addressed to the Turkish Prime Minister to free Gazin who was sentenced to one year in prison for having sung two Kurdish songs 26 October 2011 Turkey: 10 months in prison for chanting slogans at a concert A 10 months sentence to three young men who had been chanting slogans at a Grup Yorum concert in Dersim in 2007 was confirmed by Supreme Court’s 9th Office 18 October 2011 Turkey: One year in prison for singing two Kurdish folk songs Raziye Kızıl (Gazin) was sentenced to one year in prison for having sung two Kurdish songs and is also faced with an extra five-year prison threat 18 October 2011 Turkey: Convicted for having lyrics by Grup Yorum on computer On 22 September 2011 union official Berivan Doğan was convicted to ten months imprisonment for having the lyrics of Grup Yorum's songs on her computer 05 October 2011 Turkey: Kurdish singer’s concert cut short by protesters On 15 July 2011 at the İstanbul Jazz Festival the concert of the Kurdish singer Aynur Doğan was interrupted by shouting people in the audience, forcing her to leave the stage 25 July 2011 Turkey: Trial against the Kurdish singer Yılmaz Dünen The Kurdish singer Farquin (Yılmaz Dünen) is facing a prison sentence of between seven and 20 years, charged with ‘spreading propaganda for an illegal organisation’ 22 July 2011 Singer and politician Ferhat Tunç receives violence threats A gendarmerie commander reportedly ordered village guards to “break Ferhat Tunç’s legs” as Ferhat Tunç was starting a tour in villages in Cemisgezek/Dersim area 11 May 2011 Turkey: New court case against Ferhat Tunç is ‘copy-pasted’ The Turkish courts appear to be ‘copy-pasting’ cases against the popular Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç, and the agenda is allegedly to intimidate and silence him 30 March 2011 Syria: Kurdish singer Bave Selah released Bavê Selah was released on 5 March 2011, according to Gemyakurda.net 08 March 2011 Music Freedom Day: Meanwhile in Turkey, musicians are persecuted Singer Ferhat Tunç wrote this article as a personal comment to the Music Freedom Day initiative, describing the current situation for more than a dozen musicians in his country 03 March 2011 Syria: Campaign for singer who has been arrested by security agents Syrian security agents are reported to have arrested the Kurdish singer Bave Selah in Aleppo on 24 January 2011. Amnesty International runs a campaign for his release 23 February 2011 Turkey: Singer Pınar Sağ ten months in prison for praising revolutionary leader On 27 January 2011, Turkish folk music singer Pınar Sağ was sentenced to ten months in prison for praising leftist revolutionary Ibrahim Kaypakkaya at a festival in Dersim 01 February 2011 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç receives 25 days prison sentence The Kurdish-Turkish singer Ferhat Tunç was sentenced to 25 days in prison for a speech he made during a concert in 2006 27 January 2011 Germany: Kurdish concerts banned by authorities in Berlin In Berlin, a concert with the two Kurdish artists Hozan Aydın and Şerîbana Kurdî was prohibited in court because it was found to be celebrating the foundation of PKK 05 January 2011 Turkey: Supreme Court re-opens case against Ferhat Tunç Going to court is becoming a repeatative nightmare for the Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç 04 January 2011 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç on trial again Singer Ferhat Tunç was first acquitted, but then Chamber 9 of the Appeal Court rejected the decision, and Tunç will now be tried again. 31 December 2010 Turkey: Court case against two teenagers for singing Kurdish song Malazgirt Criminal Court opened a court case against 18-year-old Özgür Başak and 17-year-old R.D. who are charged for singing along the Kurdish song 'Oremar' 06 September 2010 Turkey: Date of next hearing set in Ferhat Tunç's case The date for the next hearing in the case against musician and Freemuse Award winner Ferhat Tunç has been set to 30 September 2010 04 August 2010 Turkey: Court sentences band to 10 months imprisonment for Kurdish song The Malatya Criminal Court has sentenced the band members of Grup Munzur to 10 months imprisonment for singing a Kurdish song at a concert held in June 2008 27 July 2010 Turkey: Singer sentenced to 10 months in prison Singer Cevdet Bağca to serve a 10 months prison term for a statement given to the crowd before his concert in the Turkish town Siirt in September 2009 22 July 2010 Freemuse appeals to Turkish Prime Minister: Dismiss Ferhat Tunç's case Artists, human rights activists and scholars join Freemuse in an appeal to the Turkish government for the dismissal of the latest court case against Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç 24 June 2010 Turkey: Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunc faces 15 years in prison Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç faces imprisonment of up to 15 years regarding charges of "spreading propaganda for the PKK organisation", the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party 26 May 2010 Turkey: Kurdish music in turmoil of censorship and court cases A Kurdish song has been banned, and Kurdish singers are being arrested for singing - or just singing along to - specific Kurdish songs, accused of making propaganda 19 May 2010 Turkey: One year ban and prison sentences to Kurdish music group Diyarbakır High Criminal Court banned 13 members of Bahar Cultural Centre from performing arts for one year and gave them 10 months prison sentence each 23 April 2010 Turkey: A new investigation against musician Ferhat Tunç Ferhat Tunç made a formal deposition at a Public Prosecution Office due to an investigation filed against him about a speech he made at a music festival in 2009. 16 April 2010 Freemuse Award 2010: Winners honoured in London The joint winners of the Freemuse Award 2010, Mahsa Vahdat and Ferhat Tunç, gave a short and impressive performance at the award ceremony in London 29 March 2010 Turkey: Kurdish singer Rojda charged with 20 months imprisonment In a court in Diyarbakır, the Kurdish singer Rojda Şenses was charged with one year and eight months imprisonment for ‘conducting propaganda’ in two separate concerts 29 March 2010 Turkey: Killed for singing Kurdish folk songs in bar A young man, Emrah Gezer, was killed because he and his friends had been singing Kurdish folk songs in a bar 03 March 2010 Turkey: Broadcasting in local languages allowed without time limit Autorities has granted permission to 14 radio and tv stations in Turkey to broadcast in Kurdish, Zazaki, and Arabic without time limit 03 March 2010 Turkey: Police convicted of beating café worker for playing Kurdish music Eight months prison sentences were issued by Turkish authorities to two police officers who beat up a 28-year-old café worker for playing an Ahmet Kaya song 03 March 2010 Turkey: Kurdish singer and musician Rojda arrested Kurdish artist Rojda was arrested for singing a Kurdish song entitled ‘Heval Kamuran’. She was released within a couple of hours 24 February 2010 Syria: Musicians arrested for singing Kurdish songs Seven men, including members of a wedding music band, were arrested at a Kurdish wedding party. In court they were accused of singing patriotic Kurdish songs. 18 January 2010 Turkey: Pop star both condemned and praised for political statement A statement in favour of a new plan on how the Turkish government should approach the Kurdish issue turned fans of the popular Turkish pop diva Sezen Aksu up against her 14 September 2009 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç in his seventh court case Police brutality against the Kurdish-Turkish singer Ferhat Tunç lead to a court case - not against the police, but against the singer 14 July 2009 Turkey: Yet another Kurdish song cleared in court On 21 March 2009, a broadcasting editor of a local radio station Dünya in Adana, southern Turkey, was acquitted in a trial brought for the airing of the Kurdish song 'Keçe Kurdan' 29 April 2009 Turkey: Acquitted in court case over broadcasting a Kurdish song A Turkish court has cleared the Kurdish singer Şivan Perwer’s song ‘Mihemedo’ of an accusation of ‘inciting hatred and hostility’ 02 March 2009 Human Rights for Musicians – Impressions & Descriptions: Ferhat Tunç Testimonial by Ferhat Tunc in the anniversary publication 'Human Rights for Musicians - Ten Years With Freemuse' 30 January 2009 Iran: Trial against two Kurdish singers Two Kurdish singers are to be sentenced for “propaganda against the [political] order”, reported Shâr News from Saqqez in western Iran on 17 November 2008 21 November 2008 Turkey: Busdriver convicted for playing Kurdish song A court in Diyarbakır sentenced the busdriver Mustafa Tüzün to 10 months’ imprisonment because he played a Kurdish song in his bus 08 September 2008 Turkey: Jail sentence to Kurdish folk singer Folk music singer Hasan Sağlam was sentenced to 10 months' imprisonment because he sang a Kurdish song at the Munzur Festival in Tunceli in 2007 08 September 2008 Turkey: Arrest order for director of childrens' choir Three members of Diyarbakir Yenisehir Council Childrens' Choir were acquitted, but the Turkish court issued an arrest order for the director of the choir, Duygu Bayar 23 June 2008 Turkey: Three children stand trial for singing a march in Kurdish Three members of a Kurdish children's choir face prison charges by Turkish prosecutors for simply singing an old Kurdish song 09 June 2008 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç's trial postponed again On 28 May 2008 Ferhat Tunç stood trial over an article he wrote. But once again, the trial was postponed 29 May 2008 Turkey / Germany: Panel debate about Turkish censorship On 4 April 2008, protest singer Ferhat Tunç performed with his Kurdish songs and discussed music censorship in Berlin, Germany 08 April 2008 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç's next trial postponed A Turkish court decided to postpone the next trial of the Turkish-Kurdish singer with five months, until May 2008 17 December 2007 Denmark: Exiled Kurdish singer awarded On 29 November 2007 the Danish Refugee Council awarded Mizgin, a Kurdish refugee musician based in Denmark, with an 'Artist Award' and 5,000 US dollars 05 December 2007 Turkey: Radio station to court for playing a song Gün Radio is taken to court for a song entitled 'Mesopotamia', which was played by the station on 9 November 2006 15 November 2007 Turkey: Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç threatened in the virtual world Singer Ferhat Tunç has never felt as unsafe in Turkey as he does now. Death threats against him are published on the internet, and he faces yet another court case 01 November 2007 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç acquitted The Turkish-Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunc could leave Izmir High Criminal Court as a free man on 4 October 2007. The Freemuse delegation succeeded it's mission 04 October 2007 Turkey: EU Commission to observe Tunç Trial Senior Political Advisor Ms Selma Kiliçer from the EU Commission office in Ankara will observe the trial against Ferhat Tunç - and thus join the Freemuse delegation 03 October 2007 Ferhat Tunç campaign 2007 International campaign in support of musician on trial for remarks on Kurdish issue. Freemuse request the Turkish State to drop its case against singer Ferhat Tunç 02 October 2007 Freemuse Press Statement: Drop the cases against Ferhat Tunç Freemuse Press Statement requesting immediate dismissal of all cases against Mr. Ferhat Tunç 01 October 2007 Press release: EU-MP joins Freemuse at Tunc court case in Izmir This Freemuse press release was sent via e-mail to 312 journalists and media houses world-wide on Thursday 27 September 2007 at 16:11 GMT 27 September 2007 Turkey: Delegation in support of Ferhat Tunç EU-politician and famous Danish musician join Freemuse delegation, travelling to attend the court case in Turkey against Kurdish singer Ferhat Tunç on 4 October 2007 27 September 2007 Turkey: A personal letter from musician Ferhat Tunç A personal letter from Kurdish-Turkish musician Ferhat Tunç who was appointed a 'Freemuse ambassador' in September 2007, about his relationship with the organisation 25 September 2007 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç continues his struggle Despite death threats and continuous court cases, Turkish singer and writer Ferhat Tunç continues to critisise the Turkish court system and the government 25 June 2007 Turkey: Deceased Kurdish singer Ahmet Kaya still controversial Ahmet Kaya (1957–2000) remains controversial seven years after his death. On 4 June 2007 three people were attacked for wearing a T-shirt with the printing of his name 07 June 2007 Turkey: Kurdish singer on trial for praising rebel leader On 22 May 2007 a prosecutor demanded that a Kurdish singer be sentenced to five years in prison for performing a song that praises imprisoned Kurdish rebel leader 29 May 2007 Iran: 'Half Moon' - film about women's right to sing 'Half Moon' is a prize-winning feature film which talks of women's right to perform in public, and to participate in the artistic development of a land 25 April 2007 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç informed about death threat with two months delay "It is us who have killed Hırant Dink. Now it’s time to kill Ferhat Tunç," read an e-mail delivered to Turkish Police on 24 January 2007 - right after the assassination of Hırant Dink 10 April 2007 Turkey: One more judicial inquiry against singer Ferhat Tunç Another “judicial inquiry” has been opened against Ferhat Tunç, because of what he said at a concert organised by a political party on 22 July 2006 in Alanya 19 January 2007 Ferhat Tunç: speech - November 2006 Video of speech by Kurdish-Turkish musician and composer Ferhat Tunç, held in Istanbul in November 2006 at the 3rd Freemuse World Conference 15 January 2007 3rd Freemuse World Conference on Music and Censorship 200 professional musicians, scholars, and composers from 22 countries met at the 3rd Freemuse World Conference on 25-26 November 2006 in Istanbul, Turkey 18 December 2006 Sivan Perwer Video interview with the famous Kurdish folk musician Sivan Perwer who has had numerous songs banned in Turkey. About the political role of the artist and the "Power of Music" 30 October 2006 Turkey: Government accused of "cultural genocide" In a 46-pages article, a British author describes the situation in the Kurdish region of Turkey as a “cultural genocide” and states that a new anti-terror law is misused against freedom of expression 27 October 2006 Turkey: Supporters of Kurdish tv station criminalised 56 Kurdish mayors who stood up for Danish-based Kurdish Roj TV have gone on trial in Turkey, charged with aiding and abetting the outlawed terrorist organisation Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) 27 September 2006 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç’s case sent to higher court At a criminal court hearing on 15 September 2006, musician Ferhat Tunç who might face up to three years in prison, had his case sent to a higher court. 17 September 2006 Turkey: Kurdish singer prohibited from travelling On May 14 2006 Kurdish singer Selda Bağcan was stopped by Turkish authorities from travelling to Canada for a concert, reports Kurdish Info 15 May 2006 Turkey: New sound of Kurdish music after ban was lifted Aynur Dogan, once banned because of her Kurdish ethnicity, is perhaps the most recognizable of many Kurdish singers creating a new sound in Turkey 03 April 2006 Ferhat Tunc meets Danish MP’s Kurdish singer met leading parliamentarians and high level representatives from Amnesty, Pen and Danish Arts organizations in Copenhagen. 01 February 2006 Turkey: "Keep Roj TV!" Turkish musicians protest Turkish musicians signed a petition against attempts to ban the Denmark-based Kurdish Roj TV. The Danish government has been under diplomatic pressure to effect its closure. 17 January 2006 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç receives death threats "I regret to say that something I did for humanitarian purposes to save someone’s life was turned into a lynching campaign against me" 09 January 2006 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç appeared in court The trial of artist Ferhat Tunç for an article he wrote in Özgür Gündem newspaper is adjourned to 31 May 2006 30 December 2005 Turkey: 'Censorship - the Turkish way' These original documents reveal the methods of official Turkish censorship 06 December 2005 Ferhat Tunç campaign 2005 International campaign: Freemuse and musicians world-wide request the Turkish State to drop its case against singer Ferhat Tunç 06 December 2005 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç case postponed Ferhat Tunç's hearing on the 2nd of December is postponed to 9th of March 2005, for the purpose of gathering additional documents 08 December 2004 Turkey: Ferhat Tunç again to appear before court Ferhat Tunç will be tried due to article 159 of the (former Turkish Penal Code) because of using the phrase “deep judiciary” in an article he wrote. The first hearing will be held on December 2nd, 2004. Proposed sentence is imprisonment of 1 to 3 years 20 October 2004 Meet the banned! Freemuse conference abstract (WOMEX 2004) Read abstract from the Freemuse conference session at WOMEX 2004, featuring Ferhat Tunc 19 October 2004 Meet the banned! Freemuse conference abstract (WOMEX 2004) Read abstract from the Freemuse conference session at WOMEX 2004, featuring Ferhat Tunc 19 October 2004 WOMEX 2004 This year Freemuse presented two conference sessions: "Meet the banned! Music censorship in Turkey" featured Turkish musician Ferhat Tunç, while "9/11 – The world's all out of tune" presented a new book on freedom of musical expression after 9/11 19 October 2004 Turkey: Testimony - the trials and arrests of Ferhat Tunç "1986: Arrested for political reasons. One week of interrogations, degradations and torture in the notorious prison camp DAL." Read the personal testimony of Turkish singer and human rights activist Ferhat Tunç 19 October 2004 Shoot the Singer! Book 'Shoot the Singer! Music Censorship Today' is the first worldwide presentation of contemporary cases of music censorship 25 May 2004 Freedom of Expression Awards 2004 The Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards 2004 took place on 22 March. The Music Award went to Daniel Barenboim & Edward Said. The other nominees were Gorki Luis Águila Carrasco (Cuba), Junoon (Pakistan), and Ferhat Tunc (Turkey) 24 March 2004 Veil lifts off once-forbidden Kurdish folklore music The fall of Saddam Hussein's regime has allowed the once-forbidden Kurdish music to spread throughout the country 18 March 2004 Kurds struggle to find voice in Turkey As death threats and angry slogans greet a recent performance in Kurdish by one of Turkey’s most popular singers, many human rights advocates in Turkey feel Ankara still has a long way to go to meet European Union standards on minorities 28 December 2003 Turkey: Singer Ferhat Tunç arrested Singer and human rights activist Ferhat Tunç, jailed for alleged separatist incitement, said that he still faces charges even though he was earlier released from jail. 17 July 2003 Turkish reforms music to Kurds ears The Kurdish hills are alive with the sound of music now that key changes in Turkey have enabled Kurdish musicians to come out of the closet 22 October 2002 Kurdish musician plays for freedom Kurdish singer, Newroz, explains the impact that censorship has on his career 11 October 2002 Turkey: Busdriver penalized for Kurdish music Abdullah Yagan has been sentenced to 45 months imprisonment by the State Security Court in Diyarbakir for playing Kurdish music in his minibus 29 July 2002 Heavy sentence for singing in Kurdish The National Security Court (DGM) of Istanbul has given between 3-9 years prison sentence to the band Koma Denge Asiti for performing in Kurdish. The band had been charged with "aiding and abetting the PKK" 04 June 2002 Turkey: New media law heavily criticised The Turkish parliament has approved a controversial bill that critics charge will further curtail press freedoms and strengthen media monopolies 16 May 2002 The dangerous music The adventures of Sulhattin Onen, a minibus driver who, by playing a Kurdish music cassette, had "aided and abetted the PKK". Onen was sentenced to 3 years in prison for playing Kurdish Music 10 April 2002 Local TV censored A 200-year-old Kurdish song caused the closure last week of a television station operating in southeastern Turkey, home to the country's Kurdish population. Gun-TV was taken off air on Friday for one month after broadcasting the song 29 March 2002 Ismail Türüt facing trial Ismail Türüt, Turkish folk singer, is accused of "praising an act which is considered a crime" in a song that he had prepared for the election campaign of Sevki Yilmaz, an MP linked to the now banned Welfare Party 22 February 2001 Appeal from Intl. PEN: Kurdish performers banned The international arts community is concerned by a disturbing number of cases involving the banning of songs and plays performed in the Kurdish language in Turkey 01 February 2001 Kurdish songs banned Kurdish music groups harrassed by local authorities (December 2000) 10 January 2001