Austria must neither become a self-service shop nor a hinterland for foreign elections from Turkey.
Vienna (OTS) – There is a ban on election propaganda from Turkey in Austria and the EU. Any kind of propaganda abroad, i.e. in Austria or in the EU at foreign missions and customs gates, directly or indirectly, is prohibited.
Turkish laws have not allowed foreign election propaganda since 2008
A draft law amending Law No. 298 on Basic Provisions for Elections and Electoral Registers was submitted to the Presidency of the Grand National Assembly (TBMM) of Turkey on 22 January 2008 with the signature of then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The corresponding paragraph of Article 94 of the amendment that has come into force reads: “Any kind of propaganda abroad, at foreign missions and customs gates is prohibited.”
Here are the facts from Turkey
Members of the Turkish Supreme Electoral Committee YSK decision on the referendum of April 16: In its decision No. 109, taken on February 15, 2017 and published in the 2nd repeat official gazette on the same day, between February 16 and April 15, 2017, YSK declared in very clear words:
– No oral propaganda is allowed in open places abroad and at customs gates (298/94/A-end, 94/E-6)
– It is not possible to propagate in closed places abroad and at the customs gates and (298/94/A-end, 94/E-6)
– Written or visual propaganda must not be carried out abroad through announcements and advertisements in the print media published abroad (298/94/A-end, 94/E-6)
– Publications such as opinion polls, surveys, forecasts and mini-referendums must not be made abroad and at customs gates (298/94/A-end, 94/E-6)
– It is not possible to distribute publications and materials for propaganda purposes abroad and at customs gates (298/94/A-end, 94/E-6)
“We didn’t want the political debates in Turkey to be mirrored in their own countries.”
Well-known politician and retired minister Cemil Cicek, then Deputy Prime Minister responsible for Turks abroad in 2008, who prepared the infrastructure of the legal regulation, explained the reason for the introduction of the “propaganda ban”: “We had citizens in 155 countries. Apart from 154 countries, apart from Germany. Because that’s where we have the most citizens. For a long time Germany did not approve of the votes of our citizens. They didn’t want the political debates in Turkey to be mirrored in their own countries. We added the clause ‘no propaganda shall be made abroad’ to remove the obstacles in front of our expatriates in voting, to facilitate and relieve this work.”
Inner peace and coexistence in Austria are being disturbed and destroyed!
Chairman of the TKG Birol Kilic warns as follows:
“The elections in Austria, which are imported from Turkey, pro and con destructively arouse many people, although their center of life and future is Austria. The majority of these people and we in Austria do not want any election propaganda from Turkey because we are caring for the internal Peace and coexistence in Austria are very important. This makes the integration of people from Turkey more difficult, regardless of whether they are Turkish or Austrian citizens, and encourages trench warfare. This causes hatred, prejudice and, as a result, alienates the host society from the people Turkey, we don’t want that.
Many people who are descended from Turkey and live peacefully in Austria and do not want a propaganda fight to break out.
We repeat: The majority of the Turks living here in Austria feel persecuted, slandered, isolated, threatened, blackmailed and cannot even criticize because of their freely critical opinions and confessions, and cannot even criticize them because they are being banished from the extended arms of the political party from Turkey, especially the governing parties, are being satanized, terrorized, discriminated against and threatened in Austria. Unfortunately, some Austrian parties also cooperate with this.
We want “peace at home and peace in the world”.
No longer. But no less!
Questions & contact:
Turkish Cultural Community in Austria (TKG)
Dr. Melissa Gunes
general secretary
Tel.:01/513 76 15-0
m.gunes@turkischegemeinde.at