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"My legacy is demanding justice for my father..."
This is how Ulaş Lokumcu, the son of retired teacher Metin Lokumcu, talks about his struggle for justice for his late father.
Nearly 10 years ago, on May 31, 2011, police officers intervened in a protest demonstration in Hopa, Artvin before the rally of the then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Affected by the pepper gas, Metin Lokumcu had a heart attack and lost his life at the hospital.
In the trial over Metin Lokumcu's death, 13 police officers were facing the charge of "reckless killing." At the second hearing held at the Trabzon 2nd Penal Court of First Instance on June 28, the court board concluded that "when the evidence is considered, the case exceeds its jurisdiction" and gave a ruling of lack of jurisdiction. The lawyers, during both hearings, demanded that the file of the case be sent to a heavy penal court.
CLICK - Metin Lokumcu case: Decision of lack of jurisdiction
'It has been a hope for us'
Speaking to bianet, lawyer Oya Meriç Eyüboğlu details what will happen in the trial now and Ulaş Lokumcu talks about his demand for justice.
What would you like to say about the second hearing?
Ulaş Lokumcu:
We spoke as a family before the hearing. Though the lawyers explained it in detail and though I am not a lawyer, I thought that a decision of lack of jurisdiction should be given. But our request was rejected.
Our demand for justice was against a wall. To be frank, when we came to the second hearing, we were not hopeful.
I think that the hearing kept on teaching a lesson on law, they explained everything they were supposed to explain. This time, the judge gave a decision of lack of jurisdiction. It has been a hope for us.
Meriç Eyüboğlu:
Let me continue from where Ulaş has left off. We began the second hearing by having a debate on the lack of jurisdiction. The second issue was about the defendants being taken away from Hopa. The file was taken from Hopa to Trabzon for reasons of public security.
Until a day before the hearing, it was not known where the hearing would take place. We knew that it would be taken to a tough province and the case has been sent to Trabzon.
The defendants' participation in the hearing was also a problem for us. The statements of the defendants were taken upon instruction.
We also expressed this request at the second hearing. We also had a request for an examination. If a decision for an examination had been given at the hearing, we would have left there happier.
We were not expecting a decision of lack of jurisdiction in this trial. We know that the ones who gave the order in such cases are taken away from the file. No permission for investigation was given for them. They were taken away from the judiciary.
How will the judicial process continue now?
Meriç Eyüboğlu:
It is a bittersweet joy for us that the file has been sent to the heavy penal court. The practice of trial and the history of the case do not give us much hope. But the fact that the file is sent to the heavy penal court cracks a door open. The lawyers of some police officers appealed against the file being sent to the heavy penal court. That was something we were expecting.
The heavy penal court will decide whether it has the jurisdiction to hear the case or not and set a date for the hearing. There is also the judicial recess ahead. If the court thinks that it does not have the jurisdiction, the case will not be heard at any of the two courts and the file will be sent to the Court of Cassation. What we want is for the trial to be held at a heavy penal court.
What would you like to say as a last word?
Ulaş Lokumcu:
Our quest for justice will always continue. We believe that the more this trial is heard, the fairer it will be. We have always expected support from everyone. Everyone used to love teacher Metin. He was like a peace envoy on the battlefield. We will try to ensure that justice is served. The result we will get here can prove that pepper gas is a weapon.
Meriç Eyüboğlu:
We request that justice be served in the Metin Lokumcu case and that the use of chemical weapons be banned.
What happened?
Retired teacher Metin Lokumcu lost his life after having a heart attack as he was affected by the pepper gas used by the police and the blows he received during the incidents that occured during and after the rally of the then PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Hopa, Artvin on May 31, 2011.
On the day of the incident, Lokumcu stood in front of the police with his hands behind his back, calling out to the police, "Come on, take me and save the country." This picture was then reported in the press.
70 people were detained as part of the investigation into the incidents and 16 of the detained were arrested. These persons were released afterwards.
Following Lokumcu's death, the then Prime Minister Erdoğan talked about him at the publicity meeting of the "Turkey is Ready, Target is 2023" project in İstanbul. "And, in the meantime, one of them had a heart attack... I don't know his identity... But I don't feel the need to dwell on it... He has died of a heart attack," said Erdoğan about Lokumcu.
Case transferred to Trabzon
Upon the request of the local court in Hopa, the 5th Penal Chamber of the Court of Cassation gave a decision on December 21, 2020 and ruled that the trial over the death of Metin Lokumcu should be transferred to the Trabzon Penal Court of First Instance "for security reasons."
In the justification of this decision, the Court of Cassation referred to the "possibility that social incidents and provocation might arise."
The 5th Penal Chamber of the Court of Cassation transferred the case to Trabzon as it came to the conclusions that "social incidents might erupt and the parties might face serious threats even when security measures were taken, which might lead to a failure to hold the trial in an orderly manner and pose a clear and imminent danger to public security." (EMK/SD)
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