Application of Ilke News Agency Press Agency which is broadcasting since 2007, has been rejected by submitting to the "intelligence records" for raising and recruiting personnel within the scope of “On-the-job training program” of Labor and Employment Agency Directorate [ISKUR].

Responding to the rejection of the applications, Ilke News Agency [ILKHA] General Manager Mahmut Irtem stated that the applicants were accepted by İŞKUR at the first stage but their applications were rejected with a different hand touch.

Irtem pointed out that the initiative of the local authorities could be the reason for the rejection of the applications, and stated that the implementation of the state of emergency started to be abused by some official institutions and individuals. Irtem also stated those who are opponent of the coup want to be punished with state of emergency which was declared against putschists, and said that there should not be allowed.

“Our application file has passed the commission of ISKUR”

Irtem reminded that ISKUR is giving employees under the name of the on-the-job training program to the long-termed workplaces to increase employment and qualified staff, said, “They pay salaries of those staff for 4-6-9 months, till they get experiment on the job. We have also participated in ISKUR's “On-the-Job Training Program” since 2013. We have received a few programs until today and have successfully completed these programs. Friends who work in our company received their certificates. Those who had worked with us, all of them are now have a job. Some of them are working with us and some of them are working in some other institutions but they are not unemployed. After the last of the last program we finished we applied to ISKUR to start a new work program. Our file has been on ISKUR for about a month. Our application file has been passed from the commission of ISKUR so they asked us to go there and sign a contract with those who were going to work with us. But when we went to do this, they informed us that the application was canceled with a new letter.”

“The reason for the cancellation is not the failure of the company or the lack of program”

Irtem stated that the cancellation of application did not originate from the companies and said, “When we met with the ISKUR authorities about the cancelation, we have been told that it was not because of the failure of the company or the lack of the program, but ‘one of the manager of the company had sentenced before and cancellation was done in the scope of the emergency state’. But it is not written same excuse in the official letter given to us. It has been declared that it has not passed through ISKUR commission, whereas ISKUR system can be seen in fact that our file has passed from ISKUR commission. Unfortunately we know that our application has been rejected due to this pretext.”

“We are victimized by the hands of dark structures like FETO, BÇG, February 28, and we are victimized in the same way again”

Saying that he is the shareholder who is a member of the company's authorities and sentenced, Irtem continued,

“I was taken into custody in 2001. The reason for being taken into custody was that I received and gave the Qur'an lesson on behalf of the Hizbullah congregation. We were victimized by the dark structures like FETO, like the BÇG [West Working Group], like February 28 at that time. Unfortunately, though we have been fighting with such structures for more than 15 years, we are still being victimized in the same way and we are declared terrorist in the same way.”

“Emergency State was declared against the coup, but today those who stand against the coup are being punished with Emergency State”

Irtem stated that their publishing policy is definite, said, “As Ilke News Agency, we have started press-publishing life in 2007. We have a publishing policy that is mediocre, principled, accurate, realistic and evaluating the events and the agenda objectively. It is also obvious in the news we published for 10 years. It is clear that our publishing policy is not serving to terrorism. We feel that there are dark hands behind of the throne. But we do not know who made it or why it is done. But we see it again that the dark structures have come into play. Emergency Stated has been declared and the President said ‘We have not declared the state of emergency against the people but against the state,’ but we see that the sword of emergency state is in the hands of dark structures and thrust on people’s body. Our publishing policy was clear and against the ditch of PKK dig in streets, against FETO’s coup attempt at first night of coup. But unfortunately those who stood against the coup want to be punished in some way. That is to say, emergency state declared against putschists but those who stood against the coup want to be punished with emergency state.”

“We think it has done with the initiative of the local authorities”

Noting that the initiative of the local authorities might be the reason for the rejection of the applications, Irtem said, “We did not establish that we would get a program like this from ISKUR while doing our job. We do not carry out our business through such a business. We are not in such expectations. Of course, when such a right is granted to all businesses paying tax, also it is a right for us too, and we want to take advantage of it. But it is not a situation we will admit to be rejected, especially by being declared terrorist and offend in this way. We think that it is an initiative of the local authorities of Diyarbakır and their arbitrary treatment. Because we are convinced by the information we have obtained and the meets we made.”

“They should not play with the honor of those who stand against the coup, with their blood, life and dignity”

Indicating that they will be legally followers of the problem they have lived, Irtem said: “We have met with attorneys. We will raise an objection for this issue. We will appeal to the administrative courts if they do not accept our objection and we will be followers of it. But our demand from the President of the Republic and the authorities, is that: Whatever the purpose of the proclamation of the emergency state, please act according to it. They should not play with the honor of those who stood against the coup against occupation with dignity, glory, blood, soul.

“Our most natural right to go to the mosque”

Irtem stated that he has been sentenced in the past because of teaching Quran lesson in the mosque and still he is paying the bill of this sentence, said, “We are Muslims before all and we are obliged to fulfill our duty of servitude towards Allah. We grew up in a Muslim society, and in a devout Muslim family. At the same time I graduated from Imam Hatip High School. Our most natural right is it that; to go to the mosque. To learn Quran in the mosque, read Quran. Our Prophet say ‘your most auspicious and who learns and teaches the Qur'an’. We were punished for this. 'We were charged with going to the mosque, taking the Qur'an lesson in the mosque and teaching Quran.”

“We are once again punished by the penalty that the FETO judges have given us”

Irtem said that the members of the judiciary who punished him in the case where he was tried were in prison today from FETO, “Unfortunately, we are seeing that the judges who sentenced us from this file today are being removed from the duty and they are in prison from FETO case. Süleyman İnce, the chairman of the court, who punished us is now in jail. The judge named Ömer Adil Küçük has been taken away from duty because of FETO.  Although there should be a way to relief our victimization, we have been punished once again on the penalty that FETO judges have given us. 15 years have passed since the sentence, restitution of divested rights was done, criminal record has been deleted but still we are confronted with an attitude like the fact that the rights have been made meritoriously, as if we are still in the process of imprisonment. We will be legal followers of our rights, and we will not let it go.” (M. Hüseyin Temel - ILKHA)