Semdinli Trial in Military Court

The Van 3rd Penal Court decreed that it was not responsible for the Semdinli trial; the case has been sent to military court.

Tolga Korkut

The Van 3rd Penal Court has decreed that the Semdinli case, concerning the bombing of the Umut bookshop, is outside its jurisdiction. It has sent the case to the Van Law and Order Corps Command Military Court.

Transfer to military court

After the court in Van had sentenced the defendants to more than 39 years in prison, the 9th Penal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals had decreed on 16 May that the case should be heard by a military court.

Murat Timur, a third-party lawyer, spoke with bianet. He said that the decision to transfer the case to a military court would be appealed against at the military court. Should the military court decide not to try the case, an arbitral tribunal would decide who would hear the case.

Release of suspects denied

Meanwhile, the three defendants, non-commissioned officers Ali Kaya, Özcan Ildeniz and former PKK member-turned-informant Veysel Ates are still being detained. A request for their release was denied by the Penal Court today (14 September).

"Go and judge yourselves"

Timur pointed out that the trial has not been impartial from the beginning: "This decision, if it is accepted, tells the defendants, 'go and judge yourselves'." Those who would judge the suspects are their colleagues, their superiors. How impartial a decision can such a court make? It is difficult to say anything."

The High Commission of Judges and Prosecutors has also dispersed the panel of judges who had initially sentenced the defendants.

Timur added, "We do not know whether the Public Prosecutor was able to examine 60 files worth of documents as soon as he was appointed. But the fact that he immediately wrote a six-page deliberation calling for the case to be tried elsewhere suggests that similar efforts are made elsewhere."

Büyükanit not investigated

Timur further drew attention to the fact that there has been no legal action taken against Chief of Staff Yasar Büyükanit, despite him commenting on the case in a press statement on 12 April, calling the trial the "murder of law". (TK/AG)