Federal Foreign Office spokesperson Martin Schäfer has sharply criticised the comments of Turkish President Erdogan prejudging the German national Peter Steudtner, who has been arrested in Turkey. Martin Schäfer also reiterated the demand of the German government that Peter Steudtner be released, along with the other eight German nationals currently imprisoned in Turkey.
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The German government will continue to do all that it can to prevent the nine Germans imprisoned in Turkey from becoming the hostages of the Turkish government, stressed Federal Foreign Office spokesperson Martin Schäfer on Monday in Berlin.
Those arrested must be released. At very least they must be given a swift trial so that they know the actual charges against them. Germany and Sweden expressed this in a note of protest delivered to the Turkish government on Monday.
One of the fellow human rights activists arrested on 5 July with Peter Steudtner was a Swedish national. Peter Steudtner and the other speakers of the human rights organisation Amnesty International are accused of supporting an armed terrorist organisation. Deniz Yücel, Mesale Tolu and other German nationals have been remanded in custody in Turkey on similar charges.
Martin Schäfer also sharply criticised the way Turkish politicians and the Turkish media have handled the case of Peter Steudtner. It is "very difficult to accept" that Turkish politicians prejudge cases in a way that is both absurd and "completely contradictory".
Federal Foreign Office spokesperson Martin Schäfer was referring to statements issued by Turkish President Recep Erdogan, that Peter Steudtner was a spy and wanted to divide Turkey. Turkish newspapers have published extracts from the interrogation of Peter Steudtner. His remark that he had registered with the German Federal Foreign Office as a precautionary measure has been taken as the basis for an accusation that the human rights expert was involved in espionage.
As a result of the arrest of Peter Steudtner and five other human rights activists, the Turkish ambassador was summoned to the Federal Foreign Office last week. On 18 July Chancellor Angela Merkel declared the German government’s solidarity with Peter Steudtner and the others arrested, and assured that the government will do all it can to secure their release.
Federal Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel also announced that the German government would reorient its policy towards Turkey.