İSTANBUL -  The Edirne Governor's Office requested a meeting with the asylum seekers, following the reactions of the 45 asylum seekers who were thrown into the Maritza River. Lawyer Vedat Çağırtekin from the ÖHD shared that he and his clients will meet with Governor Ekrem Canalp on Friday to shed light on the incident.

 

The allegations that 45 of the 60 asylum seekers extradited to Turkey by Greece were thrown into the Maritza River by the soldiers on August 24 are on the agenda. Describing in detail what happened after we reached them, the witnesses stated that an Afghan asylum-seeker was shot dead by the soldiers, thrown into the river, and 5 people drowned in the water on the orders of the gendarmerie commander.

 

Although it is stated that there are still no news from the group of 45 people thrown into the river, there is no concrete information about how many people they were.

 

The Edirne Governor's Office, which had to make a statement on September 1 after the incident came to the public's attention with the statements of the witnesses, denied the allegations, stating that such an incident did not occur as a result of the investigations carried out by both the gendarmerie and the border troops.

 

The Istanbul Branch of the Lawyers' Association for Freedom (ÖHD), to which asylum seekers thrown into the river applied, filed a criminal complaint with the Edirne Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on September 3, demanding clarification of the issue and filing a public lawsuit.

 

THE GOVERNOR WANTED TO MEET WITH THOSE THROWN TO THE RIVER

 

However, noting that there has been no development regarding the criminal complaint so far, Lawyer Vedat Çağırtekin noted that despite the gravity of the incident, the necessary steps were not taken.

 

Informing that the Edirne Governorship, which first denied the incident, requested a meeting with his clients upon the reactions, Atty. Çağrıtekin shared that his clients will meet with the Governor of Edirne on Friday, September 10. Çağrıtekin said that they, as ÖHD, will also attend this meeting.