Parliamentary exclusion of Cansin Köktürk due to a "Palestine" T-shirt in the German Bundestag.
Berlin's Bundestag Drama:
A political storm swept through the German Bundestag when Left party member Cansin Köktürk was given the boot for rocking a disputed T-shirt in the plenary hall. The parliamentary boss, Julia Klöckner (CDU), called out the no-no-political-statements-on-clothing rule, which Köktürk supposedly thumbed her nose at after receiving a private request to change.
"I've asked you nicely to change your clothes, and you declined. Then I'd kindly ask you to leave the session," Klöckner said, towel softening her blow before Köktürk reluctantly cleared out.
The Left politician decided not to take her ejection lying down. On a popular platform, she sounded off against the federal government's Middle East policy. "Wadephul in the plenary hall: Germany will still be hucking weapons to Israel. Nary a word about the over 50,000 dead and injured kids," she raged. And that's not all, she added: "I am asked to exit the plenary hall by Mrs. Klöckner because 'Palestine' graced the front of my tee. You lot have all dropped the ball, miserably."
Just a few short weeks ago, Köktürk donned a Palestinian keffiyeh, a.k.a. kufiya, in the plenary hall and snapped a selfie to share online. Two weeks back, her Left peer Marcel Bauer was shown the exit for wearing a beret. dpa/nd
Social media, a buzzing hive of opinions, added fuel to the fire, jumping aboard the debate about political freedom of speech in parliament. Köktürk, though, isn't new to controversy, having also raised eyebrows during the congressional opening by wearing a keffiyeh around her neck, a symbol of her pro-Palestinian stand. It appears this latest incident is another move in her game of symbolic political protest, pushing for international solidarity, human rights, and other progressive topics.
- The War-and-Conflicts section of local news might report, "Cansin Köktürk, a German Bundestag member, was expelled from the plenary hall for wearing a Palestinian T-shirt, sparking debate about political freedom of speech in parliament."
- The General News segment could cover, "Following her ejection from the Bundestag, Left party member Cansin Köktürk criticized the German government's Middle East policy and accused them of continuing to supply Israel with weapons while ignoring the plight of Palestinian children."
