Journalists unexpectedly escorted out of Turkish sports minister’s London meeting without opportunity to pose questions
Journalists were unexpectedly told to leave sports minister Çağatay Kılıç’s “public” meeting
Turkey’s sport minister insisted the press was shown out of the room before he took questions at a public meeting in London this week.
Akif Çağatay Kılıç, 38, spoke glowingly of his government’s achievements, identifying overseas voting and headscarves at universities as particular highlights, and urged Turkish nationals living in the UK to make sure they vote this August.
But after he finished his speech, reporters were told to wait outside the room while the minister took questions from the floor. The event was not advertised as a closed meeting and journalists had not previously been told that they would be asked to leave.
The first round election for Turkey’s next president will be held in Britain on the weekend of 2 and 3 August.
At the meeting, which was organised by the Union for European Turkish Democrats lobby group to coincide with Mr Kılıç’s working visit to the UK, he said:
“At the time when I was studying at a British university, some of our friends in the hall here today were unable to study at universities in Turkey.
“With our reforms we have lifted the restrictions on the education of people based on what they were wearing.
“Also as I was a student, there was a economic crisis and we were in debt to the IMF. Today we have paid off that debt and are now in a position to loan money to the IMF.”
The minister repeated Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s call for expatriates to integrate but assimilate into their adopted countries, adding that expatriates could become a more effective force by learning the language and culture of these countries.
Mr Kılıç, who is the youngest member of the Turkish cabinet, also cancelled a planned lecture at King’s College citing diary challenges. He was expected to deliver a lecture entitled: “The democratisation process and the role of youth in social compromise”.