Bulgarian MP candidate denounces Dutch attitude

SOFIA, BULGARIA - MARCH 13: Sabanali Ahmed, a candidate from the DOST Union coalition, expresses support for Turkish family minister who was forced to leave the Netherlands on Saturday, as he speaks to the press in Sofia, Bulgaria on March 13, 2017. A Bulgarian MP candidate on Monday expressed his support for Turkish Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya over the recent attitude of the Dutch government against her. On Saturday, the Dutch government first canceled Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight permit to the Netherlands and then blocked a convoy carrying Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya and forced her to leave the country under police escort. The ministers had been due to meet Turkish residents ahead of an April 16 referendum on constitutional changes. "The violent events in a country such as the Netherlands, which is the craddle of Europe, shows that Europe is getting away from democracy and human rights," Sabanali Ahmed said. .Unal Gazi, a Turkish-origin Bulgarian citizen living in Germany since 1992, complained about the xenophobia in Europe. He said far-right parties provoked hostility against Turkey and he did not think 10 years ago that any of this would happen. Two weeks ago, Turkish government ministers were also barred from holding public rallies in two German cities.(Footage by Ihvan Radoykov/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)