Confessor's claims debunked in Kurdish journalists' trial

The fourth hearing of the trial where 18 Kurdish journalists are charged with membership in a terrorist organization and facing up to 15 years in prison was held in Diyarbakır.

The lawsuits against the owner of Ari Production, director Berivan Karatorak, and the cameraman Servet Yiğen, were merged with the file in the Diyarbakır 4th Heavy Penal Court. Consequently, the number of individuals prosecuted in the case rose to 20.

At the hearing, Serdar Altan, co-chair of the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG), along with journalists and media workers Ömer Çelik, Elif Öngür, Zeynel Bulut, Berivan Karatorak, Esmer Tünç, Servet Yiğen, and Kadir Bayram attended. Lawyers Resul Temur, Salih Tekin, Serdar Çelebi, Rozerin Şahin, Emin Özhasar, Canan Atabay, and Muhammed Tapancı were also present.

The hearing was observed by representatives from the Turkish Journalists Union (TGS), DİSK Basın-İş, Amsterdam Legal Clinic, Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG), P24, and the Mesopotamia Women Journalists Association (MKG).

During the hearing, Berivan Karatorak made a statement regarding the merged file. Reiterating her statement to the prosecution, Karatorak stated, "I have no connection to any place."

The court also questioned Servet Yiğen about PEL Production, Ari Production, and PIA Production. Yiğen, who stated that he worked as a cameraman at Ari Production, claimed to have no information about the others. He said, "I did not send content to Medya Haber and Stêrk TV. I do not accept the allegations."

Subsequently, the court heard the testimony of Hamit Akbal, the night watchman of PIA Production. Akbal stated that he did not know what the employees were doing at the production. "I did not say that PIA and PEL Production made programs for Stêrk TV. When I arrived, they would have left, and when I left in the morning, they would arrive, we were not together at the same time. My statement to the police was signed without being read to me," he said.

The confessor

Then, the court connected witness Ümit Akbıyık, whose testimony led to the detention and arrest of journalists, to the hearing via the Audio-Visual Information System (SEGBIS). Akbıyık was asked to identify the journalists. He repeated his accusations against the identified journalists. Akbıyık claimed to know Zeynel Abidin Bulut, Mehmet Şahin, Ömer Çelik, Serdar Altan, Kadir Bayram, and Esmer Tunç, stating that he saw Bayram and Tunç while he was working at HDP Youth Council. He also claimed to know Bulut from the television program he hosted.

After the lawyers' statements, the court announced its interim decision, lifting the judicial control condition for Karatorak while ruling for the continuation of overseas travel bans for all other defendants. Additionally, it ruled for the return of confiscated digital materials and news tools. The next hearing is scheduled for November 19.

Confessors and secret witnesses have been a contentious issue within the Turkish legal system over the past two decades, particularly in politically sensitive trials. Critics argue that this practice empowers authorities to secure convictions merely by designating someone as a secret witness or a confessor, often without tangible evidence to support their claims.

Controversial confessor ‘identified 669 suspects in 32 hours’

30 November 2023

Background

In Diyarbakır, on June 8, 2022, operations were conducted in homes and workplaces, resulting in the detention of 20 journalists and 22 individuals in total.

Mezopotamya News Agency (MA) editor Aziz Oruç, JinNews News Director Safiye Alagaş, Co-President of Dicle Euphrates Journalists Association (DFGD) Serdar Altan, Editor-in-Chief of Xwebûn Newspaper Mehmet Ali Ertaş, along with journalists Ömer Çelik, Neşe Toprak, Mehmet Şahin, Zeynel Abidin Bulut, Elif Üngör, Remziye Temel, Suat Doğuhan, Lezgin Akdeniz, İbrahim Koyuncu, Abdurrahman Öncü, Ramazan Geciken, and Mazlum Güler were arrested on June 16, 2022, following a week-long detention process.

Among the detained journalists, Gülşen Koçuk, Kadir Bayram, Mehmet Yalçın, Esmer Tunç, and Feynaz Koçuk, along with journalist İhsan Ergünlü, were released under judicial control.

JINNEWS Director Safiye Alağaş, agency editors Gülşen Koçuk, former press worker Feynaz Koçuk, and İhsan Ergünlü, who participated in street interviews, were separated from the investigation files on March 21, 2023.

Alağaş was indicted for "membership in an armed terrorist organization." After a year of detention, Alağaş was released on June 15, 2023, during the first hearing. 

Police showcased confiscated news materials as "evidence of organization" during searches.

News programs produced by journalists, SGK records, phone conversations with colleagues, statements from secret witnesses, news archives, books read by the journalists, records of international travel, social media posts, participation in press releases, articles written, and interviews given to the press were all included as "evidence of crime" in the indictment.

Diyarbakır 4th Heavy Penal Court released 15 journalists and media workers after 13 months of detention, during the first hearing of the trial held on July 11 and 12, 2023. (HA/VK)