Campaign by Their Clients: Release My Lawyer

Some clients of lawyers from Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD), who have been sentenced to 159 years, 1 month and 30 days in prison, have submitted a petition to the İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court, demanding the release of their lawyers.

Ayça Söylemez

Campaign by Their Clients: Release My Lawyer

* Drawing: Murat Başol

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Writing to bianet from the Tekirdağ No. 2 Type F Prison, Hasan has announced that as the clients of lawyers from the Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) who have been sentenced to prison, they have launched a petition regarding the prison sentences given to them.

In the petition addressed to the İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court, the clients of the lawyers request "an end to the arbitrary arrest of lawyers."

Prison sentences not upheld yet

The third sequential hearings of the lawsuit filed against 20 lawyers from the ÇHD and People's Law Bureau (HHB) were held at the İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court in Silivri Courthouse on March 20, 2019.

Separating the files of two fugitive defendants, the court ruled that 18 lawyers shall be sentenced to a total of 159 years, 1 month, 30 days in prison.

CLICK - 18 Lawyers Sentenced to Prison for 159 Years, 1 Month, 30 Days in Total

The prison sentences given to the lawyers have not been upheld by the upper court yet. The case file will be examined by the court of appeal.

'With your verdict announced to an empty court hall...'

In his letter to bianet dated March 22, Hasan says that he stays in the same prison cell with Engin Gökoğlu, one of the arrested lawyers.

He starts his letter by stating, "We are the clients of the people's lawyers" and continues as follows: "We, as their clients, want to launch a campaign. We want everyone to submit a petition to the court board who have sentenced lawyers to prison, just as we did."

Hasan says that their target is to reach one million petitions.

The following remarks are made in the petition:

"With your verdict that you announced to an empty court hall on March 20, you sentenced our lawyers to more than 150 years in prison. You cannot make the people's lawyers give up with these sentences. I request that you immediately give up this unlawfulness and put an end to arbitrary arrests."

Prison sentences given to lawyers

Ahmet Mandacı, Zehra Özdemir, Ayşegül Çağatay, Yağmur Ereren, Didem Baydar Ünsal, Yaprak Türkmen, some of the lawyers who were being tried without arrest, have been sentenced on charge of "willingly and knowingly aiding a terrorist organization" as per the Articles 314-3 and 227-2 of the Turkish Penal Code.

The court reduced the sentences of Mandacı and Özdemir by one-sixth because the two defendants were present at the hearings, sentencing them to 2 years, 13 months and 15 days in prison. The period that they served in prison will be deducted from their prison terms. The court also lifted the lawyers' bans from traveling abroad.

Çağatay, Ereren, Ünsal and Türkmen have been sentenced to 3 years and 9 months in prison. The court did not reduce their sentences.

The court has also ruled that two fugitive defendants Oya Aslan and Günay Dağ's case files shall be separated and stay open as their defenses have not been taken yet.

All other defendants have been sentenced for "membership of a terrorist organization" as per Article 314-2 of the Turkish Penal Code.

Lawyer Barkın Timtik has been sentenced for "founding and managing a terrorist organization" as per the Article 314-1 of the Turkish Penal Code.

All others have been sentenced for "membership of a terrorist organization" as per the Article 314-2 of the Turkish Penal Code.

The following prison sentences have been given to the lawyers:

Özgür Yılmaz: 13 years and 6 months in prison and arrest warrant,
Ebru Timtik: 13 years and 6 months in prison and arrest warrant,
Behiç Aşçı: 12 years in prison and the continuation of his arrest,
Şükriye Erden: 12 years in prison and arrest warrant,
Selçuk Kozağaçlı: 10 years and 15 months in prison and the continuation of his arrest,
Engin Gökoğlu: 10 years and 6 months in prison and the continuation of his arrest,
Aytaç Ünsal: 10 years and 6 months in prison and the continuation of his arrest,
Süleyman Gökten: 10 years and 6 months in prison and arrest warrant,
Aycan Çiçek: 9 years in prison and the continuation of her arrest,
Naciye Demir: 9 years in prison and arrest warrant,
Ezgi Çakır: 8 months in prison. Because Çakır has a small child and her spouse is a fugitive defendant, a house arrest has been given for her.

(AS/SD)

ÇHD arrested lawyers progressive lawyers association

Ayça Söylemez

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Boğaziçi Üniversitesi Felsefe Bölümü mezunu. Mimar Sinan Güzel Sanatlar Üniversitesi Sosyoloji bölümünde yüksek lisans yaptı. Marmara Üniversitesi İletişim Bilimleri’nde doktora yapıyor. Vatan, Akşam, HaberTürk ve Hürriyet gazetelerinin yazıişleri ve dış haberler bölümünde çalıştı. Güncel Hukuk dergisinde yazıları yayınlandı. BirGün’de Anonim adlı köşeyi yazıyor. 2011’den bu yana bianet’te İnsan Hakları Editörü.