An Istanbul court on Friday sentenced human rights defender Nurcan Kaya to 6 years and 3 months in prison on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization,” while issuing no separate penalty on a related financing charge.
The ruling was handed down by the Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court in the final hearing of a case in which Kaya had also faced accusations of violating Turkey’s law on the prevention of terrorism financing. The court ruled that the financing allegation fell within the scope of the membership charge and did not require a separate sentence.
Kaya, a longtime human rights researcher and lawyer, told the court in her defense statement that she was being prosecuted for her professional activities. She said the case against her lacked concrete evidence and was largely based on wiretapped phone conversations that she argued did not constitute admissible evidence.
“There is no need for me to even comment on these phone records, which have no evidentiary value,” Kaya said, adding that all of her communications were במסגרת legal consultancy, research, and writing activities.
Rejecting allegations of links to the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK), a civil platform in Turkey, Kaya said the group continues to operate openly and questioned what unlawful activity she had allegedly taken part in. “Which illegal—or even legal—meeting or conference did I attend? There is no answer,” she said.
Referring to searches carried out as part of the investigation, Kaya said her home and office had been thoroughly examined for hours, with dozens of bags inspected, but no evidence found.
Her defense team included lawyers from the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), alongside prominent legal figures such as MLSA Co-Director Veysel Ok and Diyarbakır Bar Association President Abdulkadir Güleç. A member of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations’ executive board attended as an observer, while writer Rober Koptaş was present in support.
Ok argued that the indictment was not based on concrete evidence, noting that key communication records had been destroyed. “There isn’t even a debate about unlawful evidence—because there is no evidence at all,” he said, adding that prosecutors were seeking a prison sentence without presenting substantiating material.
He also challenged the legal basis of the charges, saying there was no final court ruling designating HDK as a terrorist organization and no proof linking Kaya to it. “Under these conditions, the accusation of organizational membership has no legal foundation,” he said.
Güleç described Kaya as a respected lawyer in the field of human rights and argued that the case criminalized professional legal activities. He also questioned the allegation that a donation to the Rojava Association constituted a crime, noting that the organization is legally established and subject to oversight.
Another defense lawyer, Didare Hazal Sümeli, cited Turkey’s Attorneyship Law, which requires prior approval from the Justice Ministry to investigate lawyers for offenses related to their professional duties, arguing that the proceedings were procedurally flawed.
After a brief recess, the court delivered its verdict, sentencing Kaya at the lower end of the applicable range for the membership charge.
