Journalism and freedom of expression trials: Week of December 26

This week, the hearings of several journalism and freedom of expression trials will be held. Below is the list of these hearings:

December 27th, Tuesday

• The third hearing of the trial in which four politicians, including the Co-chair of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Van Fikret Doğan faces “openly inciting the public to hatred and hostility” charge will be held in the Van 4th Criminal Court of First Instance, at 09.10. The indictment presents a banner which was hung up on the İpekyolu office of the HDP to protest the racially motivated murder of seven members of the Dedeoğlu family in Konya. Arguing that the alleged offense was committed, the prosecutor claims that “‘it was reported that there was a 12 years of hostility between the families of the perpetrator and the slained” and that “there is no evidence that the massacre was racially motivated.” At the second hearing of the trial held on 7 July 2022, the prosecutor presented his final opinion as to the accusations and requested that politicians be sentenced.
• The sixth hearing of the trial in which journalist Sonya Bayık faces “defying the Law no. 2911 on Assemblies and Demonstrations” charges will be held in the Batman 1st Criminal Court of First Instance, at 10.10. Bayık was detained in 2019 while following an event at Hasankeyf and was subsequently released. The indictment also refers to the decision taken by Hasankeyf District Governorship on July 12, 2019 which effectively banned all protests, meetings and similar activities within the district at that time. At the second hearing, Bayık’s file along with two other defendants was separated from the case file.
• The first hearing of the trial in which İleri Haber’s executive editor İzel Sezer and managing editor Batuhan Batan faces “insult by means of an oral, written or visual medium message” and “libel” charges upon complaint by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s former lawyer Mustafa Doğan İnal will be held in the İstanbul 25th Criminal Court of First Instance, at 10.35. In the indictment, prosecutor Türkşad Kunthan Uçuk presents a news article titled “Yargılanan yine gazetecilik oldu [Journalism is on trial again]” which was published on İleri Haber on 6 December 2021. The news article which is cited as evidence for the charges is about a lawsuit brought against İleri Haber’s former executive editor Doğan Ergün and former managing editor İzel Sezer upon complaint by Erdoğan’s former lawyer Mustafa Doğan İnal. The prosecutor claims that the news article is “intended to hurt the reputation and dignity of the complainant, beyond the freedom of the press and freedom of expression” and “does not make any contribution to a subject that is of public interest” and requests journalists Sezer and Batan to be sentenced. Prosecutor Türkşad Kunthan Uçuk had also indicted BiaNet’s former executive editor Nazan Özcan for “insult” and “libel” upon complaint by Erdoğan’s former lawyer Mustafa Doğan İnal.
• The 11th hearing of the trial in which journalist Ziya Çiçekçi faces “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” charge will be held in the İstanbul 33rd High Criminal Court, at 11.25. The indictment presents 13 tweets which were shared on the Twitter account of Yeni Özgür Politika daily as evidence against the journalist.
• The fifth hearing of the trial in which journalist Can Dündar faces “espionage” charges will be held in the İstanbul 14th High Criminal Court, at 11.55. This case file was first merged with “MİT Trucks Trial” where Dündar was sentenced 27 years and 6 months in prison on the charges of  “espionage” and “assisting an armed terrorist organization”. The case file, however, was later separated at the sentencing hearing on June 8 because Dündar’s statement could not be taken for the “espionage” charge as he lives abroad. At the second hearing of the trial on 6 October 2021, the court accepted Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s intervention request, arguing that he might be harmed by the alleged crime. At the fourth hearing of the trial on 23 June 2022, the court decided to accept the intervention request of the Presidency.

December 29th, Thursday

• The ninth hearing of the “Boğaziçi Rainbow case” in which 12 students of Boğaziçi University face “defying the Law no.2911 on Demonstrations and Assemblies” charge will be held in the İstanbul 24th Criminal Court of First Instance, at 09.30. The indictment presents “the LGBT flags which the students insisted on not covering up” and the slogans shouted by students as evidence for the charge. On March 24th, at the fifth hearing of the trial, the defense was notified that the expert’s report requested by the court was submitted to the case file. The report was supposed to determine whether or not the police warned the students before intervening and whether or not the students dispersed after the warning. However, the report described students as those “who defied the ban and who marched” and claimed that the students were blocking the traffic despite the fact that the report contained photographs of students standing on the sidewalk. On 13 November 2022, the prosecutor presented his final opinion as to the accusations to the case file. Refraining from mentioning the LGBTİ+ flags which were presented as criminal evidence in the indictment, the prosecutor claimed that students were protesting the appointed rector Melih Bulu contrary to the fact the students were protesting against the disciplinary investigation initiated against their friends on the grounds that they were carrying rainbow flags. Arguing that the students violated the demonstration bans imposed by the Beşiktaş and Sakarya District Governorships and claiming that they failed to disperse “despite multiple warnings”, the prosecutor requests imprisonment for 12 students up to 3 years.
• The second hearing of the trial in which the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) Central Council President Şebnem Korur Fincancı faces “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” charge will be held in the İstanbul 24th High Criminal Court, at 13.30. In the indictment prepared by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, it is stated that the criminal investigation against Şebnem Korur Fincancı was initiated after the Legal Services Directorate of the Ministry of National Defence filed a criminal complaint against Şebnem Korur Fincancı on 20 October 2022. In the indictment which was filed on 9 November 2022, the prosecutor presents Şebnem Korur Fincancı’s appearance on the 19 October 2022 broadcast of the Medya Haber TV which is claimed to be “the media outlet of the armed terrorist organization PKK” and her evaluations about the footage which was circulating on the social media at that time and which was claimed to be the proof of the allegations of use of chemical weapons by Turkey against PKK members. On the said broadcast, Şebnem Korur Fincancı provided her evaluations as a renowned forensic scientist and stated that the footage suggests that some kind of chemical weapon which affects nervous system might have been used and these suspicions must be investigated at the scene by an impartial committee as per the Minnesota Protocol of the United Nations. Ignoring the statements Şebnem Korur Fincancı provided during the criminal investigation, the prosecutor claims that Şebnem Korur Fincancı who attended the broadcast via Skype, saw the screen and especially the background of the anchorman on which “17 guerillas were massacred by chemical weapons in Zap” was inscribed but nonetheless continued her evaluations as the President of TTB and thereby “took part in a propaganda campaign in which the activities of the PKK armed terrorist organization were portrayed as if they were legal and in which the neutralization of the organization’s members were presented as if ‘guerillas were murdered’.” Also presenting “the social media posts [Şebnem Korur Fincancı] had shared back in the day” as evidence, the prosecutor requests up to seven and half years of prison sentence for Şebnem Korur Fincancı. The prosecutor who interrogated Şebnem Korur Fincancı and prepared the indictment against her also filed a lawsuit with the Ankara 31st Civil Court of First Instance on 26 October 2022 and demanded that Şebnem Korur Fincancı and the board members of TBB be dismissed arguing that Şebnem Korur Fincancı made “statements favoring the terrorist organization.” Şebnem Korur Fincancı was taken into police custody in İstanbul six days after the Ministry of National Defence filed a criminal complaint against her and was brought to Ankara. On 27 October 2022, the Ankara 3rd Criminal Judgeship of Peace ruled to arrest Şebnem Korur Fincancı. On 11 November 2022, the Ankara 4th High Criminal Court to which the indictment was presented, ruled to continue Şebnem Korur Fincancı’s detention. The court also handed down a decision of rejection of venue citing “the place where the offense was committed, the place where the defendant was caught and the defendant’s place of residence” as the reasons and sent the case file to İstanbul. At the first hearing of the trial held on 23 December 2022, it was revealed that Şebnem Korur Fincancı was handcuffed all the way from Ankara to İstanbul as she was transferred from Sincan Prison to the courthouse. At the same hearing the prosecutor presented his final opinion as to the accusations and he repeated the indictment. The prosecutor requested that Şebnem Korur Fincancı be sentenced for “making propaganda for a terrorist organization.”

December 30th, Friday

• The seventh hearing of the trial in which 3 human rights defenders who had attended the press statement on February 3rd, 2021 called by the İzmir Labor and Democracy Forces in support of the Boğaziçi University, face “insulting the president” charge will be held in the İzmir 41st Criminal Court of First Instance, at 09.25. The indictment presents the witness statements of two police officers as evidence against the rights defenders. The rights defenders stand trial in another case in which they face “defying the Law no. 2911 on Demonstrations and Assemblies” and “prevention of public duty” charges. In addition to these charges, the rights defenders also face “insulting a public official” charge because of the testimonies against them by the same police officers. At the fourth hearing of the trial held on September 2, 2022, the court decided to issue a writ to the İzmir Provincial Security Directorate so that the complainant police officer who failed to attend the hearings and who claims that the rights defenders insulted and cursed the president be brought to the next hearing. At the fifth hearing of the trial held on 7 October 2022, the court decided to wait for the footage of the incident to be submitted to the case file for evaluation and to send the case file to the prosecution so that the final opinion as to the accusations can be prepared. At the sixth hearing of the trial held on 9 December 2022, the prosecutor presented his final opinion as to the accusations and requested that human rights defenders be sentenced for “insulting the president.”

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