TRIAL OF ACADEMICS

Prosecutor Demands 2 Academics Be Penalized for ‘Aiding Organization’

At the İstanbul 25th Heavy Penal Court, the prosecutor has announced his opinion as to the accusations and demanded that two academics be penalized on charge of “knowingly and willingly aiding a terrorist organization a non-member.”

Tansu Pişkin

Prosecutor Demands 2 Academics Be Penalized for ‘Aiding Organization’

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Trial of academics, who have been charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" for having signed the declaration entitled "We will not be a party to this crime" prepared by the Academics for Peace, continued in İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse today (March 7).

Seven academics had their hearings at four different courts:

At the İstanbul 26th Heavy Penal Court: Lecturer Didem Pekün from Koç University had her second hearing; Research Assistant Demet İslambey from the Middle East Technical University (METU) had her first hearing.

At the İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court: PhD student Ömer Faruk Yekdeş from Boğaziçi University had his third hearing.

At the İstanbul 29th Heavy Penal Court: Assoc. Prof. Ulaş Bayraktar from Mersin University had his second hearing.

At the İstanbul 25th Heavy Penal Court: Dr. Lecturer Tolga Tören from Mersin University had his first hearing; Research Assistant Süreyya Topaloğlu from İstanbul Bilgi University had her fourth hearing and Prof. Dr. S.I. from Sabancı University had the third hearing.

"They should be penalized for aiding organization"

Announcing his opinion as to the accusations, the prosecutor of the 37th Heavy Penal Court demanded that Ömer Faruk Yekdeş be penalized on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the 1st and 2nd sentences of the Article 7/2 of the Anti-Terror Law (TMK).

The prosecutor of the 25th Heavy Penal Court also presented his opinion as to the accusations. He demanded that Süreyya Topaloğlu and S.I. shall be penalized on charge of "knowingly and willingly aiding a terrorist organization as a non-member" as per the Articles 314/2 and 220/7 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) and Article 5/1 of the Anti-Terror Law.

Turkish Penal Code (TCK) Article 220/7

Any person who aids and abets an organisation knowingly and willingly, although he does not belong to the structure of that organisation, shall also be sentenced for the offence of being a member of that organisation. The sentence to be imposed for being a member of that organization may be decreased by one-third according to the assistance provided.

TCK 314/2

Any person who becomes a member of the organisation defined in paragraph one shall be sentenced to a penalty of imprisonment for a term of five to ten years.

Anti-Terror Law (TMK) Article 5/1

Penalties of imprisonment and fines imposed according to the respective laws for those committing crimes as described in Articles 3 and 4 above shall be increased by one half.

Announcing his opinion as to the accusations in two separate hearings, the prosecutor changed only the last sentences of his opinion in order to adapt it to the defenses made by the academics.

At the 25th and 26th Heavy Penal Courts, the court boards gave a decision of rejection of venue for Tolga Türen and Demet İslambey.

About the Trials of Academics

On January 10, 2016, 1,128 academics published a declaration entitled "We will not be party to this crime" on behalf of the Academics for Peace initiative.

With the participation of further academics, the number of academics who have signed the declaration has reached 2,212.

With the indictment issued by the Prosecutor İsmet Bozkurt, lawsuits were filed against the academics on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article No. 7/2 of the Anti-Terror Law No. 3713.

As of March 6, 2019, 494 academics had stood trial since December 5, 2017, all the 141 academics whose cases were concluded have been sentenced to prison. 102 of these academics were sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison; 5 academics to 1 year and 6 months in prison; 14 academics to 1 year, 10 months and 15 days in prison; 15 academics to 2 years and 3 months in prison; two academics have been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison; one academic has been sentenced to 2 years and 1 month in prison; and one academic to 3 years in prison.

The suspension of the pronouncement of the verdict

Until today, 12 academics have not accepted that the announcement of their verdicts be deferred. While seven of these academics have been sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison, one academic has been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months, one academic to 2 years and 3 months, one academic to 2 years and 6 months and one academic to 3 years in prison. The verdict of one academic has not been pronounced by the court yet.

The court board of the 36th Heavy Penal Court has reduced the prison sentences of academics who did not demand the suspension of the pronouncement of their verdicts and deferred their sentences on a 2-year probation. The 32nd Heavy Penal Court has made reductions in the sentences; however, it has not deferred them. The 37th Heavy Penal Court has neither reduced nor deferred the pronouncement of the verdicts.

Three academics were not asked about whether they requested the suspension of the pronouncement of their verdicts. While one of these three academics has been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, one of them has been sentenced to 1 year and 3 months and the other academic to 2 year and 3 months in prison.

The prison sentences of academics, the announcement of whose verdicts has not been suspended since their sentence is over two years, will be taken to the court of appeal. The court of appeal will either uphold or reverse the verdict.

On March 10, 2016, the Academics for Peace made a statement for press and shared with the public what they had been going through since the declaration "We will not be a party to this crime" was published. The academics Dr. Lecturer Esra Mungan, Dr. Lecturer Muzaffer Kaya, Assoc. Prof. Dr Kıvanç Ersoy (March 15, 2016) and Dr. Lecturer Meral Camcı (March 31, 2016), who read out the statement for press, were arrested on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article No. 7/2 of the Turkish Anti-Terror Law. They were released on April 2016. Upon the request of the Prosecutor's Office, the Ministry of Justice granted a permission of trial as per the Article No. 301 of the Turkish Penal Code No. 301 on charges of "insulting the Turkish Nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey and the institutions and organs of the government."

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(TP/SD)

trial of academics

Tansu Pişkin

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bianet muhabiri. İstanbul Üniversitesi Siyaset Bilimi ve Uluslararası İlişkiler Bölümü mezunu. Şubat-Mart 2017 dönemi bianet stajyeriydi. Mayıs 2017'den beri bianet'te.