June 27, 2024
The arrest warrant for journalist Deniz Yücel, who is on trial under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, remains in place following the latest court session. Yücel's lawyer from the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), Muhammed Ünsal, referenced the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rulings in the Hrant Dink and Taner Akçam cases, highlighting violations of human rights related to similar charges.
The ninth hearing of the case, where Die Welt journalist and PEN Berlin spokesperson Deniz Yücel is accused of "insulting the President" and "publicly degrading the Turkish Nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, the Turkish Grand National Assembly, the Government of the Republic of Turkey, and the judicial organs of the State," was held at the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance. Yücel was represented by his lawyer Muhammed Ünsal, while the trial was also observed by Erol Önderoğlu, the Turkey representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
In his defense, Ünsal cited the ECHR's decisions, stating, "The ECHR has ruled that even prosecuting individuals for such actions constitutes a violation of human rights. Therefore, we request an acquittal for my client since the elements of the alleged crime are not present, even though Yücel has not yet given his defense statement. If the court is not inclined to acquit, we request the correction of the deficiencies in the case."
The prosecution also requested the correction of these deficiencies. The court decided to wait for the execution of the arrest warrant for Yücel and postponed the trial to January 16, 2025.
Case background
On July 16, 2020, the Istanbul 32nd High Criminal Court sentenced Deniz Yücel to 2 years and 9 months in prison for "propagandizing for a terrorist organization." While announcing the verdict, the court cited two of Yücel’s articles published in October 2016, leading to charges under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code for "insulting the Republic of Turkey, its government, judicial organs, and law enforcement agencies." Additionally, an article dated November 6, 2016, featured a photo of President Erdoğan with the caption "coup plotter," resulting in a separate charge of "insulting the President."
On June 14, 2021, the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance combined the case of "insulting the President" with the case of "publicly degrading the Turkish Nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, the Turkish Grand National Assembly, the Government of the Republic of Turkey, and the judicial organs of the State." In the second hearing on November 25, 2021, the court decided to issue a rogatory letter to obtain Yücel’s defense statement.
