122 Europe and Central Asia Summary of Amnesty International’s Concerns in the Region, January – June 2007 TKP) were attacked by unidentified assailants in the Ereğli district of Zonguldak in the Black Sea region of Turkey while attempting to gather signatures for a petition entitled “We are not afraid of the USA”. The group fled after being stoned by the group of attackers that reportedly swelled to around 500 people. Police prevented the lynching of one TKP supporter and made eight arrests, the majority being TKP supporters. On 4 June two Kurdish seasonal workers in Adapazarı in the Sakarya province of Turkey were subjected to an apparently racially motivated mob attack by unknown assailants. At the time of writing no charges had been brought in connection with the attack. AI was particularly concerned that in the context of such attacks on 8 June the Chief of General Staff issued a press release containing the following statements: that individuals and organizations that support peace, freedom and democracy were being “used as a screen for the terrorist organization,” and that "the military call for the Turkish nation to demonstrate a mass reflective reaction to acts of terror.” In the context of increasing attacks demonstrating intolerance against members of the public the intervention from the head of the armed forces could be considered to be inflammatory, provoking further violence. Prosecutions limiting basic freedoms / Prisoners of Conscience Those exercising their rights and basic freedoms continued to be prosecuted under unfair laws, with some such prosecutions resulting in convictions. In February AI urgently reiterated its concerns in the case of eight men convicted after an unfair trial solely on the basis of their non-violent political beliefs (see Turkey: Justice Delayed and Denied: The persistence of protracted and unfair trials for those charged under anti-terrorism legislation (AI Index: EUR 44/013/2006) and UA 31/07: Prisoners of Amnesty International Conscience/Unfair Trial (AI Index: EUR 44/002/2007)). Evidence against them was largely based on statements allegedly extracted under torture. Following their convictions, the men were at liberty pending apprehension. By the end of the period under review, at least four of them had been imprisoned. AI considered them to be prisoners of conscience. On 13 April, 50 officers including from the Anti-Terrorism Unit reportedly entered the offices of weekly magazine Nokta in the Bakırköy district of Istanbul, with a search warrant issued by the Bakırköy public prosecutor upon a complaint filed by the military prosecutor in the office of the Chief of the General Staff. Nokta had published an article about the relationship between certain unnamed civil society groups and the military on 5 April, seemingly arousing suspicion that Nokta staff or associates had gained access to confidential military information. Nokta believed the raid was a violation of the right to freedom of expression. AI was concerned that the raid may represent a pattern of increased military intervention against those who legitimately express views deemed to be unacceptable (see AI Index: EUR 44/005/2007). Subsequently, cases were brought against the journalist, Ahmet Şık, and defence expert, Lale Sarıibrahimoğlu, based on Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. Human rights groups were subjected to additional scrutiny and made the subject of attacks which represented threats to freedom of expression and association. In January AI Turkey’s bank accounts were frozen and on 30 May a decision of illegal fundraising was issued by the local authorities from the district of Beyoğlu, Istanbul. AI wrote to the national authorities expressing concerns that the freezing of AI Turkey’s bank accounts may amount to a tactic of harassment intended to impede its legitimate fundraising activities (see AI Index: EUR 44/010/2007). AI Index: EUR 01/010/2007