An İstanbul court has sentenced two police officers in the case concerning the strip search of two women during the 2013 Gezi Park protests.
Mücella Yapıcı, a spokesperson for the Taksim Solidarity group, which was formed during the protests, and her daughter Cansu Yapıcı had brought the case accusing the officers of "torture and ill-treatment" during their detention. The charges against three officers—two police officers and one detention supervisor—were filed seven years after the incident. The accusations centered on the claim that the women were subjected to strip searches while in custody, a form of "torture" according to the lawsuit.
In the final hearing on Oct 17, the İstanbul 11th Heavy Penal Court sentenced two officers two five months in prison each and acquitted one officer.
Mücella Yapıcı and Cansu Yapıcı did not attend the hearing while their lawyer was present in the courtroom. Two officers identified as S.E.K. and C.B.P did not attend the hearing either, whereas officer L.M., detained due to another charge, attended via videoconference.
S.E.K. and C.B.P. were sentenced to six months in prison for misconduct. The court reduced their sentences to five months after applying a "good conduct" reduction and then suspended the sentences. The third officer, L.M., was acquitted due to a lack of concrete evidence proving the allegations of "torture."
In line with the prosecutor’s opinion, the court did not sentence the officers for “torture,” stating that such a charge requires systematic and repeated ill-treatment.
Defense and accusations
Mücella Yapıcı’s lawyer, Gülyeter Aktepe, emphasized that her clients were detained under Turkey’s Law on Meetings and Demonstrations, not for any criminal offenses related to drugs, making the strip search inappropriate. Aktepe pointed out that the strip searches were conducted only on the women detained that day, arguing that the actions were intended to humiliate and intimidate her clients.
"At the time of the Gezi protests, Mücella Yapıcı was a spokesperson for the platform and a prominent figure," said Aktepe. "The strip search was carried out to degrade, humiliate, and harass her and others. The officers involved have even admitted to conducting the strip search."
The defense lawyer for one of the officers, S.K., countered that the strip search allegations were fabricated as part of an ideological struggle against the government. "This is an attempt to play the victim and tarnish the government. There is no evidence of ill intent or any motive for torture," the lawyer argued, requesting an acquittal for his client.
The Gezi Park protests
The 2013 protests originated in response to government plans to demolish İstanbul’s Gezi Park and replace it with a commercial and cultural center modeled after an Ottoman-era artillery barracks. In the face of brutal police response, the protests quickly grew into nationwide anti-government demonstrations attended by millions of people.
In April 2022, eight people who had been previously acquitted were convicted in a controversial retrial. Philanthropist Osman Kavala was sentenced to an aggravated life imprisonment for attempting to overthrow the government by organizing and financing the protests, while seven others, including Mücella Yapıcı, were sentenced 18 18 years in prison for aiding the attempt.
In September 2023, the Court of Cassation, Turkey's top appeals court, upheld the acquittals of five defendants while overturning the convictions of Ali Hakan Altınay, Yiğit Ali Ekmekçi, and Ayşe Mücella Yapıcı, who were released following the verdict. (VK)