Former HDP Muş MP Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit was injured during a sit-in protest outside the HDP Diyarbakır provincial building on August 20, 2019. The protest was against the appointment of trustees to the metropolitan municipalities of Diyarbakır, Mardin, and Van. According to a medical report, Koçyiğit sustained swelling at the back of her neck and bruises on her back. The injuries were classified as minor and treatable with simple medical intervention.
Prosecutor's decision lacked foundation
The Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office decided on September 24, 2020, not to pursue the case, despite the evidence of assault. Koçyiğit's lawyers appealed this decision, but their appeal was denied.
Subsequently, a petition was filed with the Constitutional Court, citing violations of personal liberty and security due to the use of physical violence by law enforcement and the failure to conduct an effective criminal investigation, thus breaching the prohibition of ill-treatment.
The Constitutional Court ruled that an effective investigation into Koçyiğit’s assault had not been conducted. The court highlighted that the prosecutor's office ignored the medical report and based its decision on police reports, which was deemed "fundamentally lacking." The prosecutor also failed to examine video and camera footage submitted as evidence alongside the complaint and relied solely on the police's video analysis report despite the medical findings.
The court concluded that "the procedural aspect of the prohibition of ill-treatment" was violated and ordered the case to be sent back to the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office for reinvestigation.
Additionally, the Constitutional Court awarded Koçyiğit 100,000 TL in non-pecuniary damages.
