Galatasaray University student Kırmızıgül was arrested while waiting for the bus because he allegedly attended a demonstration. The evidence shown for his arrest was the Keffiyeh he had wrapped around his neck. Kırmızıgül has been imprisoned for two years now. During this time he was unable to continue his studies and his request for permission to take his exams in the prison were declined by the prison management.Read more on Bianet.
On 20th of February 2012, Cihan's friends at Galatasaray University answered the question "When do you think you will get arrested?" preceding the demonstration and the press release on the second anniversary of his arrest in this video.
Here is the English transcription of how they answered:
On 20th of February 2012, Cihan's friends at Galatasaray University answered the question "When do you think you will get arrested?" preceding the demonstration and the press release on the second anniversary of his arrest in this video.
Here is the English transcription of how they answered:
-When am I thinking to get arrested?
-I am thinking of getting arrested at the earliest possible time.
-I see an undercover [policeman] coming this way, I can get arrested any minute now.
-Um, when do I think I will get arrested…As long as the policies of the government continue to be oppressive as they are now, as long as the current law of anti-terrorism,law of criminal procedure and the courts with exclusive authority continue to operate, we may get arrested at any given moment. It can be during this activity now, or it can be tomorrow or the day after. We’ll wait and see…
-When do I think I will get arrested: Maybe tomorrow…Or maybe even sooner than tomorrow.
-I am thinking of getting arrested right now. You can take me right away. Please go ahead. I mean, take me away.
-Honestly I don’t think that I will get arrested at all, because I have burnt all of the lecture notes, books, journals, plastic tubes. I have destroyed them all, and so I believe I will not be arrested. Thank you. My kind regards.
-I am waiting to get arrested very soon. I am a student at Galatasaray University. You are welcome to come take me, too.
-I am thinking of getting arrested at the nearest time possible –though even if I don’t think of it, I am sure they are thinking of it. It would suffice for them to check my city of origin during the next GBT [acronym for General Information Gathering, a regular practice undertaken by the police]scan.
-Once I start[reading] the Russian classics.
-There is no definitive time frame in my mind as of yet. My door is open to them whenever they feel like visiting. Although it would be nice if they do not prefer hours that are too early in the morning. I am a little keen on my morning sleep. I would like to have gotten enough sleep at least.
-I am in my preparatory year at the university. I think that when I finish this year, I mean when I will have actually learned French and will be starting my studies,is when I will get arrested.
-To be honest, I am only thinking of getting arrested because I feel obliged to do so. Frankly speaking, it is only recently that I have especially started considering it--because everybody’s inside and it is beginning to feel to lonely outside.
-When do I think I will get arrested? I think I will get arrested sooner than later while eating pork.
-Fascism may be ruling the country in a year or two, anyway. And so, I think we will get arrested in the couple of years that follow. I don’t know for what, though, and I hope it won’t be due to Ergenekon or some such.
-God knows, is all I can say.
-Tonight. In fact, I may have gotten arrested yesterday.
-One can never stop expecting the impossible from this country.
-Given that there is no justice, I think we will get arrested whenever the lottery falls onus. We will keep running as much as we can in the meantime.
-I am not thinking of getting arrested, but if they do arrest me, they are welcome to do so. Thank you.
-When do I think I may get arrested…We may get arrested when the government is annoyed by our presence. When we stop being well-behaved children and start asking for our rights we can get arrested. And this does not require a long time, we can get arrested this coming Tuesday, for example.
-I am not thinking I will get arrested any time soon. Were Cihan or other students thinking that they would get arrested?
-I think they will arrest me in the nearest future. At the end of the day I have short hair and I wear a kaffiyeh. I read books, too. So I am confident that it won’t take long.
-I have no idea under what pretext we will get arrested today by the oppressing parties. Could it be for asking for free education or pointing to mistakes that we see around us and suggesting alternatives? Or can it be because we read books? Why do we get arrested? I do not understand at all. Cihan or other, or I, for that matter, could get arrested anytime. But we continue fighting to change that.
-Well, I think we can get arrested for things that we cay in class, for example. It could also be because of the publications we make. I do not wish, precisely, but we do not that it is a possibility.
-It has long been asked to me: If you are a real philosopher then why are you not imprisoned the way Socrates was once imprisoned? That’s why I am waiting to get arrested one day as the proper ending to my philosophy career.
-I killed a progressive writer yesterday, but I don’t think I will get arrested.
-I listed to the band Grup Yorum, which means I will get arrested soon.
-I also think that it is highly likely that I will get arrested. Because I did pretty much all the things that those friends of ours who got arrested.
-While walking on the street, when I see a policeman, or when I see a police wagon I always feel the chilling breath of that fear [of getting arrested].
