TRIAL OF ACADEMICS
5 More Academics Sentenced to 1 Year, 3 Months in Prison
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Trial of academics, who have been charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" for having signed the declaration entitled "We will not be a party to this crime" prepared by the Academics for Peace, continued in İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse yesterday (April 4).
In their final hearings held at the İstanbul 25th, 27th and 32nd Heavy Penal Courts, academics Onur Buğra Kolcu, Elif Çevik, Aytül Fırat, Murat Koyuncu and Galip Deniz Altınay have been sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article 7/2 of the Anti-Terror Law (TMK).
While the announcement of all five verdicts has been suspended,* one of the judges member to the board of 27th Heavy Penal Court has expressed a dissenting opinion to the 15-month deferred prison sentence, stating that "the prison sentence should not have been given on the lower limit."
At the 25th Heavy Penal Court, the Presiding Judge has also expressed a dissenting opinion regarding the nature of the offence and the suspension of the announcement of the verdict, stating that the elements of "knowingly and willingly aiding a terrorist organization" have arisen and on the ground that "the defendant did not express remorse for the offense."
While a verdict of rejection of venue has been given for an academic at the 25th Heavy Penal Court, another request for the rejection of venue has been rejected at the İstanbul 32nd Heavy Penal Court.
At the 29th Heavy Penal Court, it was seen that the permission of investigation as per the Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) previously requested from the Ministry of Justice has reached the court.
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Hearings held on April 4 13 academics had their hearings at four different courts: At the İstanbul 25th Heavy Penal Court; Dr. Cavidan Soykan from Ankara University had her first hearing; Galip Deniz Altınay from Mersin University had his third hearing. At the İstanbul 32nd Heavy Penal Court; Lecturer Ümit Çetin from Westminster University, Dr. Başak Ertür and PhD student Ayşe Arslan from University of London had their first hearings; Lecturer Aytül Fırat from Kemerburgaz University and Research Assistants Hazal Halavut and Elif Çevik and Prof. Dr. Fatma Gök from Boğaziçi University had their fifth hearings; Lecturer Onur Buğra Kolcu from Arel University had his sixth hearing; Lecturer Didem Çınar from İstanbul Technical University (İTÜ) had her fourth hearing. At the İstanbul 29th Heavy Penal Court; Dr. Lecturer Berke Özenç from Turkish-German University had his third hearing. At the İstanbul 27th Heavy Penal Court; Dr. Lecturer Murat Koyuncu from Boğaziçi University had his fifth hearing. |
About the Trials of AcademicsOn January 10, 2016, 1,128 academics published a declaration entitled "We will not be party to this crime" on behalf of the Academics for Peace initiative. With the participation of further academics, the number of academics who have signed the declaration has reached 2,212. With the indictment issued by the Prosecutor İsmet Bozkurt, lawsuits were filed against the academics on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article No. 7/2 of the Anti-Terror Law No. 3713. As of April 4, 2019, 579 academics had stood trial since December 5, 2017, all the 177 academics whose cases were concluded have been sentenced to prison. 128 of these academics were sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison; 6 academics to 1 year and 6 months in prison; 16 academics to 1 year, 10 months and 15 days in prison; 16 academics to 2 years and 3 months in prison; five academics have been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison; three academics have been sentenced to 2 years and 1 month in prison; and one academic to 3 years in prison. The suspension of the pronouncement of the verdict Until today, 12 academics have not accepted that the announcement of their verdicts be deferred. While seven of these academics have been sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison, one academic has been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months, one academic to 2 years and 3 months, one academic to 2 years and 6 months and one academic to 3 years in prison. The verdict of one academic has not been pronounced by the court yet. The court board of the 36th Heavy Penal Court has reduced the prison sentences of academics who did not demand the suspension of the pronouncement of their verdicts and deferred their sentences on a 2-year probation. The 32nd Heavy Penal Court has made reductions in the sentences; however, it has not deferred them. The 37th Heavy Penal Court has neither reduced nor deferred the pronouncement of the verdicts. Three academics were not asked about whether they requested the suspension of the pronouncement of their verdicts. While one of these three academics has been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, one of them has been sentenced to 1 year and 3 months and the other academic to 2 year and 3 months in prison. The prison sentences of academics, the announcement of whose verdicts has not been suspended since their sentence is over two years, will be taken to the court of appeal. The court of appeal will either uphold or reverse the verdict. On March 10, 2016, the Academics for Peace made a statement for press and shared with the public what they had been going through since the declaration "We will not be a party to this crime" was published. The academics Dr. Lecturer Esra Mungan, Dr. Lecturer Muzaffer Kaya, Assoc. Prof. Dr Kıvanç Ersoy (March 15, 2016) and Dr. Lecturer Meral Camcı (March 31, 2016), who read out the statement for press, were arrested on charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article No. 7/2 of the Turkish Anti-Terror Law. They were released on April 2016. Upon the request of the Prosecutor's Office, the Ministry of Justice granted a permission of trial as per the Article No. 301 of the Turkish Penal Code No. 301 on charges of "insulting the Turkish Nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey and the institutions and organs of the government." |
* As per the Article 231 of the Law on Criminal Courts (CMK), when a court rules that the announcement of a verdict shall be suspended or deferred, the verdict/sentence is removed in the event that the person does not commit an intentional crime in five years.
(TP/SD)