EU-Reforms Could Not Save the Journalist

The court refused to retry journalist Kizilyaprak. The judge decided that the EU-reforms did not alter Kizilyapraks conviction. The journalist is facing a prison sentence. The case is taken to the ECHR.

Erol Önderoğlu

Zeynel Abidin Kizilyaprak was found guilty of "disseminating separatist propaganda" by writing two articles for an album called "Kurds from 1900 to 2000." The album was prepared for the Free View newspaper.

After the EU-reforms were passed by the Turkish parliament, lawyer Mukrime Tepe applied to court on September 5, 2002, and demanded that Kizilyaprak is retried. The court rejected Tepe's application.

A State Security Court (DGM) in Istanbul decided that the regulations made on article 8 of Turkey's terrorism laws did not affect Kizilyaprak's case.

Tepe had made a similar application after the EU-reforms approved in February 2002. In her application petition, Tepe had stated that Kizilyaprak's sentence was ineffective due to the constitution regulation that states that, prison sentences will not be handed out to people who express opinions; and the regulations on Turkey's terrorism laws and media laws. Tepe demanded that Kizilyaprak is retried accordingly to the new legislation.

The journalist was sentenced to a year and four months in prison

Journalist Kizilyaprak was tried at the DGM for two articles that were published in an album called "Kurds from 1900 to 2000." The daily Free View gave out the album in exchange for coupons.

The court sentenced Kizilyaprak to a year and four months in prison for "disseminating separatist propaganda," in December 2002. He was also fined1 billion 622 million Turkish lira (985 USD).

The supreme appeals court approved Kizilyaprak's sentence in June 2001. Kizilyaprak paid his fine and suspended his prison sentence for four months by paying a bail of500 million Turkish lira (300 USD).The Contemporary Journalists (CGD) had helped Kizilyaprak in paying the bail and deferring the sentence. The journalist did not turn himself in, in September 2001, when the postponement ended, and became "wanted" as a "convicted journalist." This situation still continues.

The case is at the ECHR

Journalist Kizilyaprak took his case to the European Court of Human Rights on October 17, 2001, through his lawyer Tepe. Tepe based her application on articles 6, 9 and 10 of the European Human Rights Agreement. (EO/BB/NK/EA/NM)

Origin

BÄ°A News Center

Erol Önderoğlu

[email protected]

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A graduate of the French Language and Literature Department at İstanbul University. He has served as the Turkey representative for the international organization Reporters Without...

A graduate of the French Language and Literature Department at İstanbul University. He has served as the Turkey representative for the international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF), where he began as a reporter in 1996. Since 1999, he has worked at bianet, a project of the IPS Communication Foundation, as the coordinator of the Legal Support Desk, editor for freedom of expression, and editor-in-chief. He has authored more than 4,800 signed news articles and opinion pieces. He has also written for Bizim Gazete and the journal Güncel Hukuk. He currently prepares the Media Monitoring Reports at bianet.