Dismissed and arrested, Diyarbakır Co-Mayor Mızraklı acquitted of ‘terror propaganda’

* Photo: Mezopotamya Agency (MA)

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Removed from office and arrested as part of another court case, Diyarbakır Metropolitan Co-Mayor Dr. Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) had his final hearing in the trial where he was charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization."

Held at the Ankara 28th Heavy Penal Court yesterday (September 29), the hearing was attended by Mızraklı from the Kayseri Bünyan Type T No. 2 Prison via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS).

While the prosecutor's office demanded that Mızraklı be penalized on the offense charged, Mızraklı made his defense as to the accusations.

The court board has concluded that the allegations cited in the indictment did not constitute the crime of "terror propaganda" and that Mızraklı's hunger strike in protest was within the scope of freedom of expression. Accordingly, it has ruled for his acquittal of the offense charged.

'Saying so doesn't make you a rule of law'

As reported by Mezopotamya Agency (MA), Mızraklı rejected the accusations and said, "I accept neither the setup of this indictment nor the accusations. I did it on the principle of peace and resolution."

"We say that Turkey is a rule of law, but a rule of law has some fundamental norms," Mızraklı underlined, briefly adding:

"Saying that you are a rule of law does not make you one. But the judiciary is only a part of it. The moment you ensure that universal legal norms are felt by every citizen in all spheres, you become a rule of law.

"After I was no longer an MP and came into office as the Metropolitan Mayor, the Diyarbakır Governor's Office wrote a letter for a trustee to be appointed. How could the governor's office write such a letter?

"As you know much better, the powers vested in governor's offices have been formed with the powers of the judiciary being seized.

"The appointment of a trustee to the Diyarbakır Municipality is in violation of the Constitution. We were faced with the appointment of a trustee before a person who received the votes of 500 thousand people could do his duty. How can we talk about the rule of law in such a country?"

Further in his defense as to the accusations, Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı said that they wanted to "resolve a problem which has been one of the main issues of the country for almost a century,with utmost efforts and said that they could resolve this problem together."

Criticizing the "indictments referring to so-called political parties", Mızraklı stated, "When such categorizations arise somewhere, there will be polarizations. And this will bring no good to anyone."

Lawyers requested acquittal

Taking the floor after Mızraklı, his lawyer Kenan Maçoğlu said that they had presented a written statement. Noting that they had made a detailed defense and referred to the judgements and judicial opinions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the 16th Chamber of the Court of Cassation, the lawyer also reminded the court board of the new judicial package.

Şevin Kaya, another lawyer for Mızraklı, recalled the process of trustee-appointment and said, "We don't legally see an accusation to make a defense against. Which crime is constituted - according to the Turkish Penal Code - when someone attends a condolence ceremony? We don't know it. How can an MP's participation in condolences and weddings be a crime?"

Accordingly, the lawyer requested Mızraklı's acquittal.

Pronouncing its verdict after the recess, the court board has ruled that Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı shall be acquitted of "terror propaganda."

What did the indictment say

Some of the criminal evidence cited in the indictment was Mızraklı's "attendance to an event at the HDP Diyarbakır Organization, tweet about the capital punishment of Kurdish activist Ramin Hossein Penahi in Iran, attendance to a condolence ceremony, attendance to a press statement about the October 9 operation against the HDP, attendance to the HDP's conference on 'Middle Eastern Crisis and Democratic Nation Solution' and going on a 3-day hunger strike in support of the hunger strike protest of DTK Co-Chair Leyla Güven." (TP/SD)