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Standing trial due to their participation in the Editors-in-Chief on Watch campaign for the closed Özgür Gündem daily, Ayşe Düzkan, Mehmet Ali Çelebi and Ragıp Duran as well as Özgür Gündem's former co-Editor-in-Chief Hüseyin Aykol and writer Hüseyin Bektaş are facing 46 years in prison.
While the defendants did not appear before İstanbul 13th High Criminal Court, their attorneys Özcan Kılıç and Fikret İlkiz were present in the hearing. Reporters without Borders (RSF) Turkey representative Erol Önderoğlu and other journalists have observed the hearing.
Prosecutor Ömer Karakaya presenting the dictum demanded up to 3 years in prison for the former co-Editor-in-Chief Hüseyin Aykol of the daily for "targeting people participating in fight against terror" and up to 13 years for "propagandizing for a terrorist organization".
According to the dictum, journalists Ragıp Duran, Mehmet Ali Çelebi, Hüseyin Bektaş and Ayşe Düzkan face 7 years in prison each for "propagandizing for a terrorist organization".
The board of judges adjourned the the next hearing to June 21.
Özgür Gündem trials
Closed Özgür Gündem newspaper's Editor-in-Chief on Watch campaign was launched on May 3, 2016 and ended on August 7, 2016.
56 people joined the campaign.
50 of the attendees faced prosecution. Of the prosecuted, files of the 38 have been turned into cases.
50 investigations launched
Investigations were launched into:
Faruk Eren, Ertuğrul Mavioğlu, Ayşe Düzkan, Erol Önderoğlu, Celalettin Can, Mustafa Sönmez, Melda Onur, Fehim Işık, Celal Başlangıç, Eşber Yağmurdereli, Ragıp Duran, Nurcan Baysal, Ömer Ağın, Ahmet Abakay, İhsan Çaralan, Işın Eliçin, Murat Çelikkan, Uğur Karataş, Öncü Akgül, Ayşe Batumlu, Sebahat Tuncel, Saruhan Oluç, Nadire Mater, Beyza Üstün, Mehmet Güç, Tuğrul Eryılmaz, Faruk Balıkçı, Şeyhmus Diken, Necmiye Alpay, Jülide Kural, Yıldırım Türker, Ahmet Nesin, Kemal Can, Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Hasip Kaplan, Nevin Erdemir, Tuğrul Eryılmaz, Hakkı Boltan, Cengiz Baysoy, Kumru Başer, Veysi Altay, Hasan Hayri Şanlı, Hasan Cemal, Deniz Türkali, Dicle Anter, Çilem Küçükkeleş, Said Sefaoğlu, Aydın Engin, İhsan Eliaçık and İmam Canpolat.
38 cases
The 38 people who are facing prosecution are as follows:
A. Kumru Başer, Ahmet Nesin, Ayşe Batumlu, Ayşe Düzkan, Beyza Üstün, Can Dündar, Celal Başlangıç, Celalettin Can, Cengiz Baysoy, Çilem Küçükkkeleş, Derya Okatan, Dicle Anter, Erol Önderoğlu, Ertuğrul Mavioğlu, Faruk Balıkçı, Faruk Eren, Fehim Işık, Hüseyin Tahmaz, Hakkı Boltan, Hasan Cemal, Hasan Hayri Şanlı, İbrahim Bodur, İhsan Çaralan, Julide Kural, M. Ali Çelebi, Murat Çelikkan, Murat Uyurkulak, Nadire Mater, Necmiye Alpay, Nevin Erdemir, Öncü Akgül, Ragıp Duran, Said Sefa, Şanar Yurdatapan, Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Tuğrul Eryılmaz, Veysi Altay, Yıldırım Türker.
Cases brought against 3 writers
Legal action was taken against Ömer Ağın for an article published under the editorship of Celal Başlangıç, against İmam Canpolat for an article published under the editorship of Cengiz Baysoy and against İlham Bakır for an article published under the editorship of Jülide Kural.
Of the 36 Editors-in-Chief on Watch, Erol Önderoğlu, Ahmet Nesin and Şebnem Korur Fincancı were arrested in June 2016 and released 10 days after it.
15,750 Euros as well as 187 months and 15 days in prison
Şanar Yurdatapan, İbrahim Bodur, Cengiz Baysoy, İmam Canpolat, Çilem Küçükkeleş, Nadire Mater, Yıldırım Türker, Hasan Cemal, Faruk Balıkçı, Dicle Anter, Derya Okatan, Kumru Başer, Ayşe Batumlu,Jülide Kural, İlham Bakır and Murat Uyurkulak have been convicted.
The above mentioned 16 people have been convicted to 15,750 Euros as well as 187 months and 15 days in prison.
Kızılkaya cases
Özgür Gündem Managing Editor İnan Kızılkaya is a suspect in all 38 cases. Kızılkaya's case is being combined with the main trial.
Özgür Gündem main trial
Özgür Gündem Consultant Board members, executives and writers Necmiye Alpay, Aslı Erdoğan, Ragıp Zarakolu, Filiz Koçali, Eren Keskin, Zana Kaya, İnan Kızılkaya, Kemal Sancılı and Bilge Oykut stand trial as a part of the main trial of Özgür Gündem daily. Kızılkaya and Sancıl are still arrested. (EA/DG)
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