Kurdish sports fans detained for not standing up during Turkey’s national anthem

Amedspor fans were detained for not standing up during the singing of Turkey’s national anthem in a match played in Kurdish-majority Diyarbakır province, the team’s hometown.

Monday August 28 2023 07:21 pm

Duvar English

Some 11 Amedspor fans were detained for not standing up during the singing of Turkey’s national anthem at the Amedspor-Denizlispor match played in southeastern Diyarbakır province on Aug. 27.

Amedspor is the football team of the Kurdish-majority province of Diyarbakır, which has been subjected to countless attacks in the previous years from nationalist hooligans.

The police took the fans to Diyarbakır Security Directorate on the allegation of "insulting the signs of the state's sovereignty."

The prosecutor on Aug. 28 referred Amedspor fans to the Criminal Judgeship of Peace on duty with the request to be released with judicial control measures. The procedures of the fans at the courthouse continued as of 07.30 p.m. local time.

Previously, legal action was taken against six Amedspor fans who did not rise for the national anthem during a match in 2021, as well as 19 individuals from a match in 2022. These individuals were charged with the offense of "publicly insulting the national anthem."

In 2016, attorneys representing 29 fans who were detained on accusations of “insulting the national anthem and promoting a terrorist organization” during a football match stated that their clients had experienced torture and were coerced into singing the national anthem while in custody.

In March 2023, Amedspor players were injured in racist attacks during a match in Bursa province and received death threats from hooligans in the stadium.