[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 6]
[House]
[Page 8174]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     UNREST AND BRUTALITY IN TURKEY

  (Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to condemn the excessive force 
used by Turkish police on demonstrators in Istanbul.
  The past few days, these individuals used their rights to assemble 
and express their displeasure with their government's policies. They 
called attention to what they view as increasing government curtailment 
of their rights, but they were met with aggressive violence.
  Perhaps just as shocking, most Turkish news outlets did not even 
cover these events as they unfolded because they feared that they would 
anger the government and they would go to jail, and because the 
government controls large parts of the media in Turkey.
  This is not the response of a free and democratic society. We expect 
more from our allies, and I call on Prime Minister Erdogan to condemn 
this brutal police action and urge the Turkish authorities to exercise 
restraint.
  I also urge both parties to resolve their differences swiftly and 
peacefully in a manner that respects the rights of all Turkish 
citizens.

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