Trial over Özgür Gündem raid: Prosecutor demands penalty

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Detained during the police raid on the office of Özgür Gündem newspaper, which was closed by a Statutory Decree, 22 journalists stood trial at the İstanbul 22nd Penal Court of First Instance today (July 1).

Pronouncing the opinion as to the accusations, the prosecutor's office demanded that the defendants be penalized on the grounds that they had allegedly "resisted the police to prevent them from doing their duty."

Journalists' attorney requested expert examining

Taking the floor following the prosecutor's final opinion as to the accusations, the journalists' attorney Özcan Kılıç said that the accusations did not reflect the truth. For this reason, he demanded that the CD showing the moment of incident be examined by an expert.

Noting that he was with the journalists at the moment of the incident, attorney Kılıç said, "That day, I was at the scene of the incident, too. Like the journalists, I was battered, too. There is an allegation to the exact contrary. It is against the truth in itself and concretely against the law. If you - as a judge - watch the CD that explains the situation, you will see what the truth is."

Afterwards, the court adjourned the hearing until November 23, giving time to the attorneys to make their statements as to the accusations.

What happened?

On August 16, 2016, the İstanbul 8th Penal Court of Peace closed the Özgür Gündem Newspaper on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization." While it was written "temporary" in the court ruling, it was not indicated for how long it would remain closed.

Shortly after the newspaper was closed, Special Operation Police teams raided the newspaper's office in Beyoğlu, İstanbul. Doing a criminal record check on some employees, they detained 22 people.

Held in detention for three days, the journalists and newspaper employees were then indicted on charges of "insulting a public official" and "preventing a public official from fulfilling his or her duty."

The trial began on February 9, 2018. The journalists said that they had been kept waiting in rear-handcuffs for 7 hours, subjected to racist swears and women journalists had been threatened with rape.

At every hearing, the attorneys of the defendants demanded that the seized phones of their clients be returned.

Following the written correspondence between the Beyoğlu Security Directorate and the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the court could not identify where the related phones were being kept. (HA/SD)