Prof. Gözaydın Acquitted After 94-Day Custody

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Trial of Prof. İştar Gözaydın was held at the İstanbul Courtroom in Çağlayan yesterday (January 31).

İstanbul 27th Heavy Penal Court ruled that “legal elements of the charge pressed against the defendant are not constituted” and decided acquittal of Gözaydın.

Prof. Gözaydın stayed in custody for 94 days in the wake of the investigation that started in December 2016 on charge of “being a member of an armed organization”.

What happened?

Prof. Gözaydn was detained from her home on December 20, 2016. She was arrested on charge of “being a member of an armed organization” as part of the investigation launched against staff of Gediz University, which was closed as part of the “Fethullahist Terrorist Organization/Parallel State Structure (FETÖ/PDY)”. She was released on March 30, 2017.

It was said in the indictment that Prof. Gözaydın worked at Gediz University and Samanyolu TV, which are allegedly affiliated with the FETÖ.

About İştar Gözaydın

Gözaydın (April 5, 1959 – İstanbul, Turkey) has studied at the New York University School of Law and Georgetown University International Law Institute, and holds an LLD degree from the Istanbul University.^[2] Prof. Gözaydın also produces and presents program aired by Açık Radyo (Open Radyo), in Istanbul since 1995.

A professor of law and politics, she is also a founder of the Helsinki Citizens Assembly, a human rights organization in Turkey. She was a research fellow at the University of London, Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London in 2009 and she was a Fulbright Program scholar in the U.S. in 1986-87. (BK/TK)