ROME -- In an open letter written to Matteo Renzi, the jailed editor of Turkish opposition newspaper Cumhuriyet makes a stark appeal to the Prime Minister not to ignore Turkey's ongoing human rights violations in exchange for an agreement on the migrant crisis.

 Editor-in-chief Can Dundar was imprisoned in November last year along with the newspaper's Ankara editor Erdem Gul for publishing an investigative report into the passage of weapons from Turkey into Syria.

 Erdogan, president of Turkey, vowed that they would pay a "high price" for the report, and they were convicted on charges of espionage and terrorist propaganda.

 The letter, entitled "Open letter from a journalist in prison to the prime minister of Italy," reminds Renzi of a promise he made two months ago to ensure that human rights violations were not forgotten during the agreement being made between Turkey and the EU to deal with the influx of refugees.

 It calls on Renzi not to forget the "fundamental values of Europe" and to protect the "democracy, human rights, rule of law and freedom" that the Turkish regime has "trampled on" for decades.

 Dundar also notes that there are currently more journalists jailed in Turkey than in Syria. In recent years Turkey has provoked international outcry for its censoring of the media and persecution of voices of opposition.   ft