Özgür Kaya
ADANA, Turkey - The prosecutor has requested that lawyer Şiar Rişvanoğlu be sentenced on the charge of “membership in an armed terrorist organization,” despite a key witness retracting his statement, at the second hearing of his trial before the Adana 11th High Criminal Court in southern Turkey.
The court adjourned the hearing until April 10 to allow time for defense statements in response to the prosecutor’s opinion on the merits.
Rişvanoğlu, who is registered with the Adana Bar Association, is on trial over allegations that he was part of the “social field structure” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK/KCK), according to an indictment prepared by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. The PKK, which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. The indictment cites witness testimony, HTS phone records, reports by Turkey’s Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), and open-source research as evidence.
Rişvanoğlu, who is being tried without arrest, was present at the hearing alongside numerous lawyers. During the session, the prosecutor disregarded the retraction of testimony by witness Merdan Rüştü Ovalıoğlu—who is currently detained in a separate case and had previously given a statement against Rişvanoğlu during the investigation phase—and instead referred to his statement to police, requesting that Rişvanoğlu be punished for “membership in an armed terrorist organization.”
Rişvanoğlu’s lawyers sought to call a witness during the hearing. However, the panel of judges rejected the request, stating that, in light of the information and documents in the case file, hearing the witness would not contribute to the substance of the case.
Ali Ekiz, one of Rişvanoğlu’s defense lawyers, said it was clear which political party his client belonged to and what political activities he was involved in, arguing that the indictment approached this reality in a distorted manner. He said hearing the witness was necessary to resolve this contradiction.
“The file is nothing but a pile of papers”
Asked by the court to respond to the prosecutor’s opinion, Rişvanoğlu said he reiterated his previous defense statements.
Arguing that the elements presented as evidence were not lawful, Rişvanoğlu rejected all accusations and emphasized that the indictment included no evaluation in his favor. He said he became a target after a speech he delivered at the bar association on Oct. 12, 2024. Stressing that he openly expressed his socialist and communist identity, Rişvanoğlu said he was detained for that reason and that a plot had been set up against him.
Recalling that a case had been filed against him on allegations of “PKK/KCK membership,” Rişvanoğlu said he had no connection with the organization named in the indictment. He noted that 35 cases had been filed against him over his 32-year legal career and said the prosecutions were being carried out with political motives.
Rişvanoğlu said he had been in Antakya and Samandağ—districts in Turkey’s southern Hatay province—during the devastating February 2023 earthquakes and had collected aid for earthquake survivors, but that evidence in his favor had not been gathered. He added that he had been repeatedly prosecuted because of his stance on the Kurdish issue and argued that the material elements of the alleged crime had not been established under Article 217 of Turkey’s Criminal Procedure Code.
“The file is nothing but a pile of papers. I am a socialist. I think a plot has been set up. I stand with the working class and the oppressed in the geography of Kurdistan. I had made a presentation advocating standing with all oppressed individuals. Yet the case filed claims I am a PKK/KCK member. I am a founding member of the Revolutionary Workers Party. I have no connection with the organization mentioned in the indictment. I think I am being targeted. After I gave that speech, I received threatening letters, and the tires of my car were slashed. I have been practicing law for 32 years. Thirty-five cases have been filed against me. I am constantly being tried. I believe these prosecutions will not end. The indictment and its annexes are nothing but a pile of papers. I think those who set up this plot will also be tried in the future. It is clearly evident that the crimes of abuse of office and attempting to influence a fair trial have been committed,” he said.
“A case of intimidation”
Numerous lawyers representing Rişvanoğlu requested additional time to submit defense statements in response to the prosecutor’s opinion on the merits.
“The indictment and the opinion are unlawful. With this trial, Şiar Rişvanoğlu is being tried to be punished,” the lawyers said, requesting time to respond. They argued that the witness’s statement at the previous hearing had refuted both the indictment and the case. “This is a case of threats and intimidation,” they added.
The court panel accepted the lawyers’ request and adjourned the hearing until April 10.
