A series of trials related to freedom of expression are set to take place across Turkey this week, with journalists, activists and political figures facing charges ranging from “insulting public officials” to “membership in a terrorist organization.”
June 30, Monday
At 10:30 a.m., the first hearing will be held at the Istanbul 23rd High Criminal Court in the case against İbrahim Aydın, chair of the board of the opposition newspaper BirGün, along with birgun.net’s publication coordinator Uğur Koç and managing editor Yaşar Gökdemir. They are charged with “targeting individuals involved in counterterrorism operations” and “publicly insulting a public official” for publishing a news report on Sabah newspaper’s visit to Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek.
At 12:00 p.m., the Istanbul 49th Criminal Court of First Instance will hold the second hearing in a mass trial against 139 people accused of “participating in unlawful demonstrations and failing to disperse despite warnings.” The charges stem from protests in Saraçhane, Istanbul, following the brief detention of Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.
July 1, Tuesday
At 9:45 a.m., the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance will hear the case against Ramazan Yurttapan, Haydar Ergül, Cihan Doğan, Musa Şanak, and Nazan Üstündağ. They are accused of “insulting the Turkish nation, the Republic of Turkey, and state institutions.”
At 9:50 a.m., the 10th hearing of the case against journalist Sultan Keleş and four others will be held at the Istanbul 72nd Criminal Court of First Instance. Represented by the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), the defendants face charges of “insulting a public official” and “resisting to prevent a public official from performing duty” after being detained while covering a protest by workers from electronics retailer Bimeks.
At 10:20 a.m., the Istanbul 24th High Criminal Court will hold the third hearing in the trial of Nimet Tanrıkulu, a founding member of the Human Rights Association (İHD), who is accused of “membership in a terrorist organization” as part of an Ankara-based investigation. Tanrıkulu was detained and arrested in November and released in March.
At 11:50 a.m., journalist Deniz Yücel—also represented by MLSA—will appear before the Istanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance to face charges of “publicly insulting the Turkish nation, the Republic, Parliament, government and judiciary” as well as “insulting the President.” Yücel previously served as a correspondent for Die Welt and was jailed in Turkey for nearly a year in 2017.
July 2, Wednesday
At 2:00 p.m., a hearing will take place at the Ankara 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance in a case against staff from the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. The defendants face charges of “insulting the President of Turkey.”
July 3, Thursday
At 10:10 a.m., a hearing in the case against Abdullah Kaya, who is charged with “terrorist propaganda,” will be held at the Ağrı 2nd High Criminal Court in eastern Turkey.
At 11:40 a.m., the first hearing in the case against journalist Bilge Aksu will be held at the Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court. Aksu is accused of “membership in a terrorist organization.”
July 4, Friday
At 10:30 a.m., the Istanbul 26th High Criminal Court will hold the second hearing in the case against Ahmet Saymadi, a Central Committee member of the Socialist Reconstitution Party (SYKP). Saymadi was detained during a February 21 operation targeting the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK) and is charged with “membership in a terrorist organization.” He has been in pre-trial detention since his arrest.
