Workers Protesting Dismissals Sentenced to 1 Year, 3 Months in Prison

* Photograph: Evrensel newspaper

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

Seven workers of TARİŞ factory in Çiğli Organized Industrial Site in Turkey's Aegean province of İzmir were dismissed from their jobs on November 7, 2018 after they became members of the DİSK/Gıda-İş Union.

While some other workers from the factory protested the dismissals in front of the factory, executives of other unions also came to the factory and joined the protests. 65 people in total were taken into custody on that day.

After this incident, a lawsuit was filed by the TARİŞ executives against the workers who were dismissed from their jobs as well as the executives of other labor unions who protested the dismissals.

Announcing its ruling in the second hearing on May 3, 2019, the İzmir 9th Penal Court of First Instance has sentenced the dismissed workers and the union executives to 1 year and 3 months in prison on charge of "deprivation of liberty" as per the Law no. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations.

TARİŞ company filed a lawsuit

The executives of the TARİŞ company filed a lawsuit against both the workers it had dismissed from their factory and the following union representatives: Makum Alagöz, the İzmir Branch Chair of DERİTEKS Union, Sedat Kadak, the Workplace Representative of Birleşik Metal-İş Union, Mazhar Uzbek, the Aegean Region Representative of Gıda-İş and Ümit Gültekin, the Financial Secretary of Genel-İş Union's Number 2 Branch.

The second hearing of the case was held at the İzmir 9th Penal Court of First Instance last Friday (May 3). While the executives of the factory called the police officers who were on duty on the day of incident as witnesses, workers presented their statements of defense.

Announcing its verdict, the court has ruled that the workers and union executives shall be sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison on charge of "deprivation of liberty" as per the Law no. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations. The announcement of all verdicts has been deferred.

Aslan: It is TARİŞ executives who have to be tried

Making a statement regarding the ruling, Gıda-İş Union Chair Seyit Aslan has underlined that the court announced its ruling in the second hearing and asked, "What does it mean to give a judgement in such a short period?"

Referring to the arbitrary practices of the TARİŞ executives and and the pressures that they exerted on the workers regarding the  right and freedom of the workers to unionize, Aslan has indicated that it is the TARİŞ executives who have to be put on trial, not the workers.

Aslan has also stated that the verdict will be taken to the court of appeal. (HA/SD)