A Turkish court acquitted 109 out of 110 people on trial for participating in protests in Istanbul’s Saraçhane district, ruling that their actions did not constitute a crime and were protected under the constitutional and international right to peaceful assembly.
MLSA - The Istanbul 61st Criminal Court of First Instance issued the verdict during the third hearing of the case, in which the defendants were charged with "participating in an unlawful assembly and march." The charges stemmed from demonstrations held after Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was arrested earlier this year.
The court ruled in favor of acquittal for 109 individuals and separated the file of one remaining defendant. In its decision, the court referenced Article 34 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey, which guarantees everyone the right to organize meetings and demonstration marches without prior permission, provided they are unarmed and peaceful.
The court also cited Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which protects the freedom of peaceful assembly and association. The ruling emphasized that any limitations on these rights must be narrowly interpreted and can only be applied in specific circumstances, such as concerns over public safety or the protection of others’ rights.
Additionally, the court referred to established case law from the Criminal General Assembly of the Court of Cassation, concluding that the actions of the defendants did not meet the threshold of criminal behavior.
Background on the protests
The protests began on March 19 following the annulment of İmamoğlu’s university diploma and his subsequent arrest, a move widely criticized as politically motivated. Demonstrations quickly spread beyond Istanbul to other major cities across Turkey. In Istanbul, the Saraçhane protests continued for several days, drawing large crowds in support of the mayor.
Authorities responded by detaining 110 individuals, many of them students and young people, during home raids on March 26 and 27. The defendants were charged under Article 32 of the Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations, accused of "failing to disperse after a warning despite participating in an unlawful assembly without arms."
The indictment prepared against them was accepted by the Istanbul 61st Criminal Court of First Instance, and several of the detained individuals were released under a preliminary court ruling. Among those released were Abuzer Görgüç, Kerem Gümre, Levent Dölek, and Hasan Bilgin.
The first hearing in the case took place on Sept. 9, with the second session, held on Oct. 30, spanning two days.
During the proceedings, defendants and their lawyers pointed out factual errors in the indictment, including inaccuracies regarding the time and place of the alleged offenses. One student noted that a photo used as evidence was taken in front of their university at an earlier date and that they had already been in police custody at the time referenced.
Defense attorney Ezgi Önalan argued that the police report was incomplete and that the prosecutor had failed to conduct a thorough review of the evidence.
