Kurdish journalist Sadık Topaloğlu arrested on charge he already received sentence for
Sadık Topaloğlu, a former reporter for the pro-Kurdish Mezopotamya Agency (MA), was remanded in custody on July 13 for “being a member of a terrorist organization.”
Following Topaloğlu’s arrest, the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA) reported that Topaoğlu was caught in a joint operation by the police and the intelligence. Topaloğlu was involved in the intelligence network of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and providing financial resources to the militant group.
However, Topaloğlu's lawyer denies these allegations and notes that Topaloğlu was already sentenced to 6 years and 3 months in prison on the same charge in 2022, hence this case breaks the principle that one person cannot be charged with the same offense twice. The first case is currently pending at the Court of Cassation, the top appeals court.
Journalists Sadiye Eser, Sadık Topaloğlu sentenced to six years in prison
Lawyer Ayşe Acinikli explained that the new investigation was initiated based on testimony already included in the original case. A witness and a PKK confessor, Özgür Baran, claimed in his testimony that he had seen Topaloğlu in Qandil, a PKK stronghold in Iraq. The same testimony was used to reopen the investigation, despite being identical to the previous case.
The photos published by AA showing Topaloğlu in PKK outfits were from 2014 and 2015, when there was a peace process going on between the government and the militant group, noted the lawyer.
“Topaloğlu had taken a break from journalism due to health issues. In the 2019 case, he had been detained for three months and received a sentence in 2022 based on Baran’s testimony.
“The confessor mentioned an MLP structure belonging to the PKK and claimed to have seen Topaloğlu in Qandil. The police searched Topaloğlu’s home, and during interrogation, the prosecution and the court considered questions related to an interview Topaloğlu had conducted and notes on a non-banned book as organizational documents.
“Despite the redundancy of the charges, the court ruled for Topaloğlu’s re-arrest. Acinikli criticized this move as a clear legal violation. She also condemned the media coverage for reporting the arrest five days later as breaking news, suggesting an intentional manipulation of public perception.”
Acinikli revealed they have appealed against the detention and are awaiting whether the prosecution will proceed with an indictment or decide there is no basis for prosecution, thus closing the case.
“A second sentence”
The Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG) also condemned the arrest, highlighting that Topaloğlu had already been tried and sentenced for the same allegations in 2022. They pointed out that Topaloğlu was convicted based on testimony from a witness who never attended court hearings.
The DFG denounced the portrayal of Topaloğlu’s arrest by state and pro-government media, which depicted it as a significant victory against the PKK’s alleged intelligence network, thereby vilifying him without regard for the presumption of innocence.
The 2022 case
Sadık Topaloğlu was detained along with his fellow journalist Sadiye Eser on November 29, 2019, as part of an investigation by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. On December 3, the court ruled for the arrest of both journalists.
The prosecutor's indictment accused them of "membership in a terrorist organization," based on their reporting activities and the testimonies of Dilek Akyol and Özgür Baran, who provided incriminating statements.
The case was heard at the İstanbul 22nd Heavy Penal Court. During the first hearing on March 26, 2020, both journalists were released. In subsequent hearings, witness Dilek Akyol testified that although the police showed her photographs of Topaloğlu, she did not recognize him.
Another witness, Özgür Baran, who had previously given statements against Eser and Topaloğlu, did not attend any of the court sessions despite being summoned.
Despite this, the prosecution relied on Baran's initial statements rather than Akyol's court testimony. The prosecutor requested a conviction based on Baran's earlier testimony.
On September 8, 2022, the court sentenced Topaloğlu and Eser to 6 years and 3 months in prison each. The court's justification stated that "although no act constituting a crime was identified, they were deemed dangerous for the state and society."
(HA/VK)