"We are not safe"
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"Tonight, I will inquire about your children to make you suffer. I will send someone to you. I will spend my entire life trying to settle accounts with you, even if it will cost me my life ... I will be after you and your loved ones until the end of my life. I did not do anything to you; even if I do, they will say that I am a man. Your life and the lives of your loved ones are in danger ... I will find no peace until I kill you..."
These threatening messages were sent by Mehmet E., the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) former mayor of Eyyübiye district in Turkey's southeastern province of Urfa. Mehmet E. sent these messages to N.E., a woman of Spanish origin with whom he once did business together.
N.E. now lives in Manchester city in England. Her attorneys there had a restraining order issued against Mehmet E. to protect her*.
Her attorney in Turkey is Eren Keskin, the Co-Chair of the Human Rights Association (İHD). Eren Keskin applied to the Urfa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and filed a criminal complaint against Mehmet E. on charges of "threat", "insult" and "sexual harassment."
Everything started in December 2019. N.E. owns a company managing business connections between international brands. She met Mehmet E. on social media. N.E. helped Mehmet E.'s company to get in contact with another company in Spain. While their business relationship was ongoing, Mehmet E. and N.E. also had an emotional relationship where they also discussed marriage. While their emotional relationship ended in October 2020, their business relations continued.
E. made a significant profit during his business relations with N.E.; however, he did not pay her the 15-percent commission that he was required to pay. After N.E. started to ask for the money, he started threatening her.
Keskin refers to İstanbul Convention
In her criminal complaint to the Urfa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, attorney Keskin has underlined the following points:
"Mr. Prosecutor, the Republic of Turkey is a party to the İstanbul Convention of the Council of Europe. The related convention is the most important convention concerning the violence against women.
"The Article 12 of the Convention stipulates that the states 'shall take the necessary measures to promote changes in the social and cultural patterns of behaviour of women and men with a view to eradicating prejudices, customs, traditions and all other practices which are based on the idea of the inferiority of women or on stereotyped roles for women and men.'
"Similarly, the 5th clause of the Article 12 of the İstanbul Convention says, 'Parties shall ensure that culture, custom, religion, tradition or so-called "honour" shall not be considered as justification for any acts of violence covered by the scope of this Convention.'
'She was threatened when she demanded her right'
"The suspect is a person who is doing politics within the ruling party and has a political and social power in Urfa. He got in contact with my client to use her business power in international trade and used the emotional relationship on my client's part as a tool for his own commercial development.
"After my client demanded commission as stipulated by the agreement between the parties, he started to insult and threaten my client.
"My client is in a state of great fear for both herself and her family. My client is now at 'high risk' in terms of security in England.
"My client has been sharing all these threats and insults with the relevant police units in Manchester and the Embassy of Spain in England.
"We submit the certified translation of all threatening and insulting messages that my client was subjected to by the suspect. I respectfully request an attorney that an investigation be conducted as per the relevant articles of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), the statement of the suspect be taken, all phone records be added to the file, the statement of my client be taken through rogatory and a lawsuit be filed against the suspect based on the evidence in the file as per the Articles 106/1-2, 125 and 105/1-2 of the TCK."
'Our client was trapped'
N.E.'s attorneys in England have also shared the following information with the attorneys of Mehmet E.:
"In relation to the death threats of your client, the relevant police unit in Manchester and the Embassy of Spain in the United Kingdom (UK) have classified our client as 'high risk' and have started works to protect her and her family due to your client's actions.
"Our client says that your client manipulated her and did not make her payment for her connections, promotion and work. Our client was trapped."
What does the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) say?TCK 105/1If a person is subject to sexual harassment by another person, the person performing such act is sentenced to a term of imprisonment from three months to two years or to a judicial fine. TCK 106/1Any person who threatens another individual by stating that he will attack the individual's, or his relative's, life or physical or sexual immunity shall be subject to a penalty of imprisonment for a term of six months to two years. TCK 126/1Where, during the commission of the offence of insult, the name of the victim is not explicitly mentioned but there is no doubt that the insult was aimed at the victim or where the accusation is unclear but there is no doubt as to its character, then it shall be assumed that both his name was mentioned and the insult was expressed. |
(EMK/SD)
* We did not use the real name of N.E.
