Technical issues have plagued the “Forgotten American in Turkey” petition at https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/forgotten-american-turkey since it launched on February 6. While tested prior to release, when published it was discovered that the signature counter does not register an accurate count. The petition was initiated in an effort to bring EPC teaching elder Andrew Brunson’s imprisonment in Turkey to the attention of the White House. Brunson was arrested in October 2016 and falsely charged with “membership in an armed terrorist organization” in December.
In the meantime, EPC leadership learned this morning that President Trump is scheduled to speak by phone with Turkish President Recep Erdoğan at 4:00 p.m. EST on February 7. It is not known if Brunson’s situation will be discussed.
White House petitions must reach 100,000 signatures within 30 days of launch to be considered for response by White House officials, so the inaccurate counter may hinder this effort to reach President Trump. Until the counter problem is resolved, those interested in reaching the White House are encouraged to use www.whitehouse.gov/contact#page.
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