Lawyer Gets Presidential "Black Eye Award"

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 17 April 2019)


        Sürenoğlu proudly displaying his hard-won award.

Lawyer Sertuğ Sürenoğlu was beaten by President Erdoğan's
bodyguards after he asked why the road in front of the Çırağan
Sarayı hotel was closed.  Sürenoğlu was then forced to sign a
statement that he had insulted the President.  After being brought
before a judge, Sürenoğlu was put under house arrest.

The incident occurred at about 8:30 pm on Saturday, 13 April, while
Erdoğan was attending the wedding of the daughter of media-football
chieftan Yıldırım Demirören at the Çırağan Sarayı hotel in Beşiktaş,
Istanbul. Sürenoğlu was riding on a bus, heading for his home, when
traffic came to a halt because Erdoğan had arrived at the hotel.  After
waiting on the bus for 30 minutes, the passengers, including
Sürenoğlu, alighted.




Sürenoğlu asked Erdoğan's bodyguard about the stoppage and the
public prosecutor described what happened next this way: "The
individual ran toward the President's car and when it was determined
that he was hurling insults, the requisite measures were taken and he
was invited to board a (police) car.  However, the individual resisted,
saying 'who are you to take me anywhere!'  Enough force was used
to break down this resistance (!) and the individual was neutralized.
He was then handcuffed and handed over to the police at Çırağan
Sarayı."

As for Sürenoğlu, he asserted that "the President's bodyguards
tortured me and made me sign a statement that I had insulted the
President."


    
Scene from a previous award ceremony, held in Washington DC 
in May, 2017.