TRIAL OF ACADEMICS
Deferred Prison Sentence of 15 Months For One Academic
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The 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 the İstanbul Çağlayan courthouse today (February 14).
15 academics had their hearings at two courts.
At the İstanbul 32nd Heavy Penal Court: Second hearings of Dr. Lecturer Mehmet Şiray, Lecturer Aslı Odman and Prof. Dr. Nilüfer Göle from the Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts, Dr. Lecturer Gökçe Çataloluk from Bilgi University, Dr. Lecturer Gülsüm Depeli Sevinç and Dr. Lecturer Umut Azak from Hacettepe University, Research Associate Erdem Üngür from Kültür University, the fourth hearing of Prof. Dr. Fatma Gök from Boğaziçi University, first hearings of Hande Gülen from Yalova University, research associates Osman İşçi and Şadiye Can Gül from Hacettepe University, Prof. Dr. Mehmet Teoman Pamukçu and Assoc. Prof. Z.D.H. from the Middle East Technical University.
At the İstanbul 26th Heavy Penal Court: Instructor Akın Tek from Şehir University and postgraduate student Özgecan Korkmaz from Michigan University.
Deferred prison sentence for Prof. Şiray
Dr. Lecturer Mehmet Şiray did not attend his hearing. His attorneys repeated the written defense they presented to the court in the break.
In their defense as to the accusations, the attorneys stated that material and moral elements of the crime are not present and the act their client committed is within the scope of freedom of expression.
Announcing its judgment on Dr. Lecturer Mehmet Şiray, the board of the İstanbul 32nd Heavy Penal Court has ruled that the academics shall be sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison on the charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" as per the Article 7/2 of the Anti-Terror-Law (TMK). The pronouncement of the verdict has been suspended.
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 February 14, 2019, 479 academics had stood trial since December 5, 2017, all the 100 academics whose cases were concluded have been sentenced to prison. 94 of these academics were sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison; 4 academics to 1 year and 6 months in prison; one academic to 2 years and 3 months in prison; two academics have been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison; one academic has 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, 11 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 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." |
(TP/VK)