The Croatian Journalists' Association (HND) has called on the County Court in the southern Adriatic town of Dubrovnik to release from detention Turkish journalist Vicdan Ozerdem until the end of the extradition process, requested by the Turkish authorities, stressing that the Turkish journalist was granted a political asylum in Germany where she resides.
Ozerdem was arrested on a warrant issued by Interpol at the state border between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina on 25 July. The journalist has lost 15 kilograms over the past month and a half and her health has deteriorated.
Turkey, which is at the helm of the list of countries exercising prison repression against journalists, has arrested over 100 journalists for verbal conflict or for participating in protest rallies organised to defend human rights, freedom of the media and freedom of speech, the HND said in a statement, adding that it expected the extradition request to be rejected so that Ozerdem could travel back to Germany.