Journalism and freedom of expression trials: Week of March 6

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

March 6th, Monday

• The second hearing of the trial in which human rights defender and designer Aslı Saraç faces “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” charge will be held in the Ankara 28th High Criminal Court, at 10.30. Despite the fact that Saraç observed numerous peaceful gatherings as the executive of the Ankara branch of the Human Rights Association, the prosecutor presents Saraç’s attendance to a press statement in Ankara organized on 11 May 2017 to commemorate Ulaş Bayraktaroğlu who was killed in Raqqa while fighting ISIS, as evidence against the human rights defender. In the indictment which he filed on 4 October 2022, the prosecutor also presents six social media posts which Saraç had shared on her Facebook account in 2017 and which were “discovered” in an “open source investigation” conducted by the police after it was determined that Saraç attended the said press statement. Among the social media posts cited as evidence are also those which contained the photos of Semih Özakça and Nuriye Gülmen who had carried out a long-winded protest on the Yüksel street after being expelled from their jobs via a state of emergency decree. The prosecutor who indicted Saraç had also indicted prominent human rights defender Şebnem Korur Fincancı and documentary filmmaker Sibel Tekin with terrorism charges. The court held the first hearing of the trial in absentia on 20 January 2023 and postponed the hearing on the grounds that another case file which has many defendants in pre-trial detention has been assigned to the court.

March 7th, Tuesday

• The first hearing of the trial in which Mesopotamia News Agency reporter Ceylan Şahinli faces “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” charge will be held in the Ankara 20th High Criminal Court, at 10.00. In the indictment which was filed on 5 December 2022, the prosecutor presents three demonstrations in 2017 which he claims that Şahinli attended. Additionally, the prosecutor presents three 2017 retweets “discovered” in an “open source investigation” conducted by the police on a social media account allegedly belonging to Şahinli. Among the social media posts cited as evidence is also a tweet by the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) MP Meral Danış Beştaş. Similar to the indictment against human rights defender Aslı Saraç, the prosecutor also cites as evidence the press statement in Ankara organized on 11 May 2017 to commemorate Ulaş Bayraktaroğlu who was killed in Raqqa while fighting ISIS. The prosecutor who indicted Saraç had also indicted prominent human rights defender Şebnem Korur Fincancı and documentary filmmaker Sibel Tekin with terrorism charges. In connection with another criminal investigation, journalist Şahinli has been held in pre-trial detention together with 9 of her colleagues over the suspicion of “membership in a terrorist organization” since 29 October 2022.

March 8th, Wednesday

• The seventh hearing of the trial in which journalist Metin Cihan and his alleged source face “illegally obtaining or giving personal data” charge will be held in the İstanbul 22nd Criminal Court of First Instance, at 10.35. In the indictment in which the Turkey Youth Foundation (TÜGVA) is listed as “the injured party”, the prosecutor presents social media posts of Cihan through which he publicized the leaked documents about TÜGVA which show the corruption the foundation has been involved in as evidence against the journalist. Even though the prosecutor states that he failed to authenticate the content of the documents, he nonetheless claims that the documents have been “doctored” and requests up to six years imprisonment for Cihan. On 11 May 2022, at the third hearing of the trial, the court decided to release Ramazan Aydoğdu with judicial control measures imposed upon him and left the request of Cihan’s lawyer for the authenticity of the papers in question to be asked from the TÜGVA unanswered. On June 24 2022, at the fourth hearing of the trial, the court decided to issue a writ to the Ministry of Justice to inquire about the experts who were assigned to prepare a report but rejected to do so without providing any explanation. At the fifth hearing of the trial held on 19 October 2022, it was revealed that the expert who was assigned to the case file also withdrew from the file. The court decided to send the case file to another expert. At the sixth hearing of the trial held on 14 December 2022, Cihan’s lawyer revealed that the new and seventh expert to whom the case file was sent for examination was a police officer. Cihan’s lawyer requested the court to revoke its decision to send the case file to the expert in question. The judge, however, rejected the request on the grounds that “it was not acceptable.”

March 9th, Thursday

• The 23rd hearing of the trial in which since-shuttered Dicle News Agency’s (DİHA) reporter Şerife Oruç faces “membership in a terrorist organization” charge will be held in the Batman 2nd High Criminal Court, at 09.30. Oruç and two others were detained by police while in the field. Oruç was arrested on 5 July 2016 over the suspicion of “membership in a terrorist organization”. After two years in pre-trial detention in the Batman M-type prison, Oruç was released on 9 July 2018 but detained immediately at the prison gate because of a warrant issued for her arrest. She was later released on 10 July 2018. The court waited for four hearings for a response to the writ issued to the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office to get information about the criminal investigation being carried out against Oruç. Previously, the court had waited to hear the testimony of an anonymous witness who had Oruç arrested. Having waited until the 19th hearing of the trial held on 17 February 2022, the court decided not to hear the anonymous witness as he could not be found and instead had the testimony he gave during the investigation be read. On 23 June 2022, at the 21st hearing of the trial, the court decided to inquire with the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office about a criminal investigation initiated in 2022.
• The third hearing of the trial in which journalist Yağmur Kaya whom MLSA represents in court faces “identifying officials on anti-terror duties as targets” charge upon complaint by Musa Çitil will be held in the Aydın 2nd High Criminal Court, at 11.00. The indictment presents an interview Kaya did with the Human Rights Association Co-Chair Eren Keskin which was published on Artı Gerçek on 20 August 2020. The prosecutor argues that even though the name of the victim in the case against Musa Çitil and 405 soldiers in his command was included in the interview with her initials, same “sensibility” was not shown for the name of Musa Çitil who was acquitted in said case and therefore there was an intent to identify Çitil as a target. Despite the fact that the prosecutor does not specify to whom Çitil was identified as a target, he requests Kaya to be sentenced. At the first hearing of the trial held on 6 October 2022, the court decided to accept the intervention request of Çitil on the grounds that he might have been injured by the alleged offense. At the second hearing of the trial held on 13 December 2022, the court decided to hear Eren Keskin as witness. The court also decided to investigate over the National Judiciary Informatics System (UYAP) to determine if any criminal investigation or lawsuit has been brought against Keskin in connection with the interview cited in the indictment. The prosecutor who prepared the indictment against Kaya had also indicted journalist İnci Aydın. The Aydın 2nd High Criminal Court had acquitted Aydın at the fourth hearing of the case.

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