Summary of proceedings against Independent MP Ahmet Şık

* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA)

Click to read the article in Turkish

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has issued a summary of proceedings against Independent İstanbul MP Ahmet Şık and requested that his legislative immunity be lifted. The Office has sent the file to the Ministry of Justice to be presented to the Parliament.

The file submitted to the Ministry has argued that Şık called on people to "take to the streets" during the students' protests against the appointed rector of Boğaziçi University, alleging that the related statements of the MP constituted the act of "publicly provoking to commit crimes."

Support from students

In a message of support shared on the Twitter account of Boğaziçi Resistance platform, it is said:

"Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has demanded that MP Ahmet Şık's immunity be lifted on charge of 'publicly provoking to commit crimes' by using his support for our protests as an excuse. The MPs who support our resistance do not commit a crime, those unjustly try them do!"

Ankara Cumhuriyet Başsavcılığı, milletvekili Ahmet Şık'ın eylemlerimize desteğini bahane ederek 'suç işlemek için alenen tahrik' suçu kapsamında dokunulmazlığının kaldırılmasını talep etti. Direnişimizi destekleyen milletvekilleri değil, onları haksızca yargılayanlar suç işliyor!

— Boğaziçi Direnişi #0 (@budirenisi) April 15, 2021

What happened?

The Parliamentarians Bureau of the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation against Independent MP Ahmet Şık on February 5 over his statements amid the Boğaziçi University protests. The politician faced the charge of "publicly provoking to commit crimes."

On February 1, 2021, when several students of Boğaziçi University were detained during their protests against the appointed rector at their campus, Şık went to the courthouse in solidarity with the students.

Making a brief statement there, Şık said, "No one should go after this wandering of 'they leave with election.' In such a system, you cannot struggle against the mafia and a judiciary which has surrendered to the mafia. You struggle with a law where universal legal norms are taken as a reference. Therefore, the election to be held changes nothing."

After Şık uttered these remarks, it was reported on some social media platforms and news websites that "Ahmet Şık called on people to rise up."

Releasing a written statement about the issue, the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office announced that the Parliamentarians Bureau of the office had launched an investigation against the MP "upon the news reported on some websites and social media platforms that Independent MP Şık, using the Boğaziçi protests as an excuse, made a call of 'this government will not leave with an election, take to the streets'." (DŞ/SD)