A court in Turkey has rejected journalist Hatice Şahin’s request to lift a travel ban that has been in place for seven years. The Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court ruled to continue the restriction and decided to request the consolidation of her case with another ongoing trial at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court.
Court upholds travel ban
Hatice Şahin, a journalist for the Yeni Yaşam newspaper, had previously been sentenced to six years and three months in prison on charges of "membership in a terrorist organization." However, an appeals court overturned the ruling, leading to a retrial.
The first hearing of the retrial was held at the Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court, attended by Şahin and her lawyer, Bünyamin Şeker. The presiding judge formally recorded the appeals court's decision to overturn the sentence before proceeding with the trial.
During her defense statement, Şahin requested to testify in Kurdish. The judge informed her that, in case of a conviction, she would be responsible for covering the interpreter costs and asked if she accepted this condition. Şahin responded, "Yes." When asked whether she spoke Turkish, she answered in Kurdish, and her defense statement was then translated by an interpreter.
Şahin stated that she had no objections to the appeals court's decision to overturn the verdict. Her lawyer, Bünyamin Şeker, rejected the negative aspects of the appeals ruling and argued that the travel ban imposed on Şahin since 2018 had exceeded the legal time limit. He requested its removal.
The prosecution, however, stated that there were still procedural deficiencies in the case file and recommended that no decision be made at this stage.
The court ultimately ruled to maintain the travel ban. It also decided to send a request to merge the case with another ongoing trial at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court. The next hearing was scheduled for June 17.
Case background
Hatice Şahin was arrested on Oct. 9, 2018, along with 145 others, as part of an investigation into the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), a pro-Kurdish civil society platform. She was released on Oct. 19, 2018, but was placed under a travel ban.
The Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office accused Şahin of "membership in a terrorist organization," citing statements from a secret witness, her phone conversations with news sources, and flight tickets between Diyarbakır and Istanbul as evidence.
On Sept. 19, 2022, the Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court sentenced her to six years and three months in prison. However, the Diyarbakır Regional Court of Justice’s 9th Criminal Chamber overturned the ruling, citing the existence of ongoing investigations and trials against her.
Şahin is now being retried following the appeals court’s decision.
