Six British tourists have been arrested in Turkey for playing bingo. The tourists were arrested at a bar in Altinkum, a popular tourist destination. Bingo is seen as an unregulated form of gambling and is illegal in Turkey. The six British tourists that were arrested were reportedly detained by Turkish Authorities for several hours, before being fined £55 each and then being released.

This is not the first time British nationals have been arrested for playing bingo. A similar incident occurred in 2007 at the same resort town. The bar in Altinkum was raided because of ‘complaints’ and according to reports the bar is to remain closed for a short period as ‘punishment. Players are justifiably angry because the bingo game in question was a charity game to benefit a British woman suffering from cancer.

The charity game which was taking place in the Paradise bar was organized by friends of Ruby Myerscough. Ms. Myerscough who is 60 years old moved to the resort in Turkey from her original home in Burnley in the UK. It was reported that Ms. Myerscough was diagnosed with cancer about seven weeks ago and was facing expenses for chemotherapy and radiotherapy after undergoing surgery.

One of those arrested was Pauline Ellington, who has lived in Altinkum for three years, stated, “I hope I don’t get a criminal record for playing bingo. We have been hauled out of there as if we are common criminals. It is disgusting as the night was for a good cause.” Bingo has long been used for fundraising in the UK but evidently the Turks take a dim view of charity games of any kind.

In February 2008 the Turkish government passed laws prohibiting unauthorized companies from offering gambling to Turkish citizens. For some unknown reason they also banned the popular video sharing website YouTube. It would appear that Turkey is not the ideal place for bingo players.