Çiğdem Toker ordered to pay TL 30,000 in compensation; writer Yavuz Ekinci convicted; Beritan Canözer's “propaganda” trial begins; Emre Orman detained during a police raid; two journalists attacked in Konya 

 

Çiğdem Toker ordered to pay TL 30,000 in compensation

 

The eight hearing of a compensation lawsuit filed against Çiğdem Toker, a columnist for Sözcü newspaper, due to her article titled “İBB’den Vakıflara Hizmet Raporu” (“The İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality Prepares Report on Its Services to Foundations”), published on 28 January 2019, was held at İstanbul’s Küçükçekmece 10th Criminal Court of First Instance on 31 March 2022. The trial was launched upon the complaint of the Turkish Technology Team (T3) Foundation, which was seeking TL 80,000 in non-pecuniary damage. Toker did not attend the hearing. Announcing its decision at the end of the hearing, the court sentenced Toker to pay TL 30,000 to the T3 Foundation in respect of non-pecuniary damage.

Following the verdict, the T3 Foundation called Toker a "slanderer" for her report in a Twitter post, saying it would use the money to support a scholarship program dedicated to "raise journalists who will not compromise on ethics and morality" and adding #JournalismIsNotSlandering. 

Selçuk Bayraktar, a top executive of the T3 Foundation and a son-in-law of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, also targeted Toker, calling her a "liar" and "a sorry excuse for a journalist." "Journalism is not lying, fraud, lack of shame and dignity either," he wrote on Twitter. You can find more details in our report. 

 

Writer Yavuz Ekinci given jail sentence for his social media posts

 

An Istanbul court sentenced writer Yavuz Ekinci to 1 year, 6 months and 22 days in prison for “spreading propaganda for a terrorist organization” over eight social media posts he shared in 2014 and 2015. The sentence, which was handed down at the third hearing in the trial on 31 March 2022, was suspended.

 

Ekinci denied propaganda accusations and said his posts were within the scope of freedom of expression. His lawyers emphasized that there was no call for violence in the posts or an intent on the part of Ekinci to spread propaganda for a terrorist organization. They also pointed out to the fact that the posts were not considered to be a crime eight years ago, when they were first posted.

 

Government withdraws controversial bill protecting “reputation of companies”

 

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputies withdrew on 31 March a draft bill that had proposed up to three years in prison for any reporting that could harm the reputation of financing companies.

 

The draft bill quickly became controversial after it was submitted to Parliament for deliberations last week as critics claimed it was aimed at protecting interests of the companies that are close to the government. The bill was part of a 39-article proposal including amendments to several economy-related laws that was submitted to the Parliament’s Planning and Budgetary Committee last week. The proposal was approved at the Committee on 31 March after two of its articles, including the one concerning the financing companies, were withdrawn. AKP deputies said the bill was withdrawn because of the need for a “reconsideration.”

 

The withdrawn article had proposed an amendment to the Law on Financial Leasing, Factoring and Financing Companies to introduce prison term of 1 to 3 years and administrative fine for anyone who “produce or spread unfounded news in a way that may damage a company's reputation or damage its reputation or assets.”

 

 

Trial of Beritan Canözer on “propaganda” charge gets underway

 

The first hearing in the trial of Jin News reporter Beritan Canözer on the charge of “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” over her social media posts was held at the Diyarbakır 4th High Criminal Court on 31 March 2022.

 

Canözer and her lawyer Resul Temur attended the hearing, where the journalist denied the accusations. Recalling that she had been previously prosecuted for the same posts, Canözer stated that she did not have the social media account “Beritan Sarya,” mentioned in the indictment. “In addition to the fact that the account by the name Beritan Sarya does not belong to me, I have already been investigated due to this account before. The proceedings against me were discontinued. When this account is examined, it will be understood that it has not been used in Turkey,” said Canözer, who demanded her acquittal.

 

Lawyer Resul Temur noted that Canözer faced continuous judicial harassment throughout her professional career as a journalist. Requesting the court to drop the case, Temur said:  “Previously, our client was detained on the grounds that she was a ‘member of the terrorist organization.’ She is constantly investigated due to her social media account. It is established that our client has not used the account by the name of ‘Beritan Sarya.’ The investigation launched against her in this regard was previously dropped on 12 November 2021. Within the scope of previous investigations, announcement of the sentence was deferred in some cases. She also has a case pending review before the Supreme Court of Appeals.”

 

The court ruled to include the case files where Canözer was tried and sentenced due to her social media posts in the present case file and request a copy of the file pending review before the Supreme Court of Appeals. The trial was adjourned until 21 June 2022.

 

Prosecutor seeks prison term for Abdurrahman Gök on the charge of “propaganda”

 

The fifth hearing in the trial of journalist Abdurrahman Gök, a reporter for Mezopotamya News Agency known for his photos capturing the murder of university student Kemal Kurkut by police during the Newroz celebrations of 2017 in Diyarbakır province, on the charges of “membership in a terrorist organization” and “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” over his news reports, phone calls with his sources, social media posts and secret witness statements was held at the Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court on 31 March 2022.

 

Gök and his lawyer were in attendance.

 

Making his defense statement in response to the indictment issued against him on the charge of “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” over five posts he shared on social media, which was merged with the ongoing trial at the previous hearing, Gök denied the accusations.

 

“The police officer or officers who killed Kemal Kurkut were acquitted; no action was taken against the Police Department or the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office for making false statements to the public. Am I to be punished here just because I documented this murder? Is this the message intended to be clearly conveyed to me and to other journalists who would go on to document similar incidents from now on?” asked Gök.

 

The journalist stated that the main reason he was prosecuted due to his journalistic activities was that he captured the murder of Kemal Kurkut frame by frame. “The law enforcement and, by extension, the prosecution are attempting to retaliate against me ‘on behalf of the state’ for exposing the public lie that Kemal Kurkut was a suicide bomber by publishing his photos,” argued Gök.

 

The prosecutor submitted his final opinion to the court, demanding that Gök be acquitted on the charge of “membership in a terrorist organization,” but convicted of “successively making propaganda for a terrorist organization.”

 

In its interim ruling, the court granted Gök and his lawyer additional time to prepare their defense statements in response to the prosecutor’s final opinion, and adjourned the trial until 30 June 2022.

 

Metin Gürcan's "espionage" trial to be held behind closed doors

 

The trial of Metin Gürcan, security analyst and a columnist for Al-Monitor who is also a founder of the opposition DEVA Party, began on 30 March. The Ankara court ruled at the first meeting that the proceedings would be closed to the public and immediately ordered the journalists and others who were in the courtroom to leave. 



 

Gürcan was arrested in a police raid on his home in Istanbul on 26 November 2021 and was jailed pending trial three days later on charges of "political and military espionage" on the basis of his work and contacts with some diplomatic missions in Ankara. Gürcan denied the charges saying his work is based on open sources of information and that he did not have access to state secrets. 



 

The Ankara 26th High Criminal Court ruled for closed proceedings on the grounds that the trial involves information that should be kept confidential. It also ordered that the pre-trial detention of Gürcan continue.

 

Journalist Emre Orman detained

 

Journalist Emre Orman was detained on 30 March 2022 as part of an investigation launched against him by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

 

Orman was taken into custody during a police raid on his home in the Ataşehir district of İstanbul, and was taken to the İstanbul Police Station at Vatan Street. According to media reports, a confidentiality order was issued on the file. Orman’s access to a lawyer was also restricted for 24 hours.

 

Orman was released on 1 April after testifying before a prosecutor and a criminal judge of peace. The judge, however, imposed an international travel ban on Orman and ordered him to report to a police station every week.

 

Trial of former Cumhuriyet workers adjourned

 

The fifth hearing in the trial of four former journalists from Cumhuriyet newspaper Hazal Ocak, Olcay Büyüktaş Akça, İpek Özbey and Vedat Arık on charges of “marking officials involved in the fight against terrorism as targets” and “violation of privacy” over a news report titled “Boğaz’da Kaçak Var” (“There Is an Unlicensed [Building] at Bosphorus”) published on 14 April 2020, was held at the İstanbul 26th High Criminal Court on 31 March 2022.  

 

P24 monitored the hearing, which was attended by Hazal Ocak, Olcay Büyüktaş Akça, İpek Özbey, Vedat Arık and their lawyers.

 

Lawyer for the journalists, Damla Çaltepe, requested the court to inquire of the Interior Ministry whether the Presidency’s Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun, the complainant in the case, had been assigned any duty in the fight against terrorism and to hear Altun at the next hearing.

 

In its interim decision, the court rejected the request that Altun be heard at the hearing and adjourned the trial until 27 September 2022.

 

The news report by Ocak included the allegations that Altun had commissioned unlicensed landscaping, walling and razor wire installation on a plot of land near his residence in İstanbul’s Kuzguncuk district that he had rented from the General Directorate of Foundations. Following the report, Altun filed a complaint with the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, claiming that “his residence was photographed and his full address was published without permission” and that he, as an official involved in the anti-terrorism efforts of the state, was exposed as a “target for terrorist organizations.”

 

Journalist Çetin Yılmaz handed down prison sentence over social media posts

 

The fourth hearing in the trial of journalist Çetin Yılmaz on the charge of “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” (TMK 7/2) over 13 social media posts he shared between 2015-2020 was held at the Manisa 2nd High Criminal Court on 30 March 2022.

 

Announcing its decision without taking a recess after hearing the defense statements, the court sentenced the journalist to 1 year 6 months and 22 days in prison. The sentence was suspended.

 

Two journalists attacked in Konya

 

Umut Yaygır and Özcan Saraç, local journalists in the Ereğli district of Konya province, were attacked by a large group of people on 28 March 2022 while they were having a meal at a restaurant in the district center. The two journalists were hospitalized following the attack. According to local media reports, they were recovering and in normal health.

 

Yaygır and Saraç, owners of a local news portal, previously covered the allegations of corruption in the Ereğli Municipality, which is run by the government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The journalists stated that the attack was carried out by a group of Turkish nationalists affiliated with the MHP. In addition, the journalists claimed that the local leader of the Ereğli Grey Wolves was among the group of 10-15 attackers, which was allegedly orchestrated by Ereğli Mayor Hüseyin Oprukçu, also an MHP member. 

 

Trial of İsmail Saymaz to resume in June

 

The trial of journalist İsmail Saymaz on the charge of “illegally obtaining and disseminating someone’s personal data” resumed at the Niğde 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance on 29 March 2022. Saymaz is on trial for reporting the allegations that public prosecutor İlker Vural had threatened a doctor in a private hospital in Kayseri province.

 

Saymaz addressed the court from the İstanbul 30th High Criminal Court in İstanbul, where he resides, via the judicial videoconferencing network SEGBİS. Serdar Laçin, Saymaz’s lawyer, stressed that the statement uttered at the time of the incident by the public prosecutor, “I’d cram this place with special operations officers if I so wish,” were newsworthy.

 

Lawyer Aslı Kazan, on the other hand, requested the court to review the CCTV footage. In its interim ruling, the court rejected Kazan’s request and ruled to send the case file to the prosecutor’s office for the preparation of their final opinion. The trial was postponed to 28 June 2022.

 

Trial of Sema Karakurt, Eylem Sonbahar and Metin Cihan postponed

 

The 14th hearing of a trial in which journalists Sema Karakurt, Eylem Sonbahar and Metin Cihan and 14 other defendants are charged with “preventing police officers from performing their duties” (TCK 265) and “insult” (TCK 125) for covering the demonstrations against the G20 Summit, held in Antalya on 15-16 November 2015, took place at the Antalya 25th Criminal Court of First Instance on 29 March 2022.

 

The court adjourned the trial until 13 September 2022 to await the execution of the arrest warrants issued against a number of defendants.

 

Journalist Rüstem Batum’s trial adjourned

 

The seventh hearing in the trial of journalist Rüstem Batum on the charges of “insulting the president” (TCK 299/1) and “inciting the public to hatred and animosity” (TCK 216/1) over 20 posts he shared on Twitter in 2016 and 2018 was held at the İstanbul 5th Criminal Court of First Instance on 29 March 2022.

 

The court adjourned the trial until 14 June 2022 to await the execution of an arrest warrant issued against Batum, who resides abroad. 

 

“Boğaziçi exhibition case” to resume in June

 

The fifth hearing in the trial of seven students on the charge of “inciting the public to hatred and animosity” (TCK 216/1) over an image displayed during an exhibition put on by students on the campus as part of the protests against the rector appointed to Boğaziçi University by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, which was scheduled to take place at the İstanbul 21st Criminal Court of First Instance on 30 March 2022, was postponed to 1 June 2022 as the court judge was on leave of absence.

 

Journalists Erkan Çapraz and Ömer Oğuz appeared before court

 

The first hearing in the trial of Erkan Çapraz and Ömer Oğuz, the editor-in-chief and editorial coordinator of the news portal Yüksekova Haber, respectively, on the charge of “making propaganda for a terrorist organization” was held at the Hakkâri 1st High Criminal Court on 29 March 2022.

 

Çapraz and Oğuz participated in the hearing via SEGBİS from the courthouse in the Yüksekova district. Oğuz addressed the court first, and stated that he did not report the news story cited in the indictment for the purposes of making propaganda for a terrorist organization, rejecting the charges. “I am a journalist, and I covered a story in line with the journalistic principles,” said Oğuz, who demanded his acquittal.

 

In his statement, Çapraz denied the accusations. Noting that the video cited in the indictment did not include any propaganda for a terrorist organization, Çapraz said, “When political parties want to make press statements, they call us and we go there to report the story. The news item in question did not include any characterization that would amount to making propaganda for a terrorist organization.” Çapraz also demanded his acquittal.

 

Jindar Uçar, Çapraz and Oğuz’s lawyer, addressed the court next, requesting that the speech text, which was delivered by Leyla Güven in Kurdish during the press statement and translated into the Turkish by the law enforcement, be re-translated by an expert. In addition, Uçar stated that the verdict delivered by the Hakkâri 3rd High Criminal Court in the trial of Leyla Güven due to the speech in question was subsequently overturned and the case file was merged with an ongoing trial at the Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court, and requested the court to await the outcome of that trial. Stressing that the social media posts, cited in the indictment, should be considered within the scope of freedom of expression and the press, Uçar asked the court to acquit Çapraz and Oğuz.

 

In its interim decision, the court ruled to request the Diyarbakır 9th High Criminal Court to send the court transcripts prepared by an expert, the indictments, the minutes of the hearings and reasoned judgment in writing, if any, that were in the case file of the trial overseen by the Hakkâri 3rd High Criminal Court. In addition, the court ruled to ask the Diyarbakır court whether they would assent to merging the two case files, if deemed necessary due to legal and factual connection between the cases upon further review. The trial was postponed to 10 May 2022.

 

Trial of Muhammed Enes Sezgin and Sena Dolar adjourned

 

The first hearing in the trial of Mezopotamya News Agency reporter Muhammed Enes Sezgin and Jin News reporter Sena Dolar on the charge of “violating the Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations” over covering a press statement was held on 31 March 2022. In addition to Sezgin and Dolar, 38 other people are on trial as part of the case.

 

The two journalists and their lawyers, who submitted letters of excuse, did not attend the hearing, held at İstanbul’s Büyükçekmece 10th Criminal Court of First Instance.

 

The court decided to request the Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office for the case to be heard in a courtroom near the Silivri Open Prison since its courtroom lacked the capacity to accommodate 40 people, and adjourned the trial until 29 September 2022.

 

Sezgin and Dolar were detained together with demonstrators during a police intervention to a public statement about the ban on May Day celebrations in İstanbul’s Avcılar district on 27 April 2021. All 33 people who were taken into custody were released on the same day after giving their statements. In September, the Büyükçekmece Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office issued an indictment against 40 people, including the journalists, over the public statement.

 

Former DİHA reporter Mehmet Arslan faces prison term

 

A criminal lawsuit was filed against Mehmet Arslan, a former reporter for since-shuttered Dicle News Agency (DİHA), on the charge of “making propaganda for a terrorist organization.” According to a news report dispatched by Mezopotamya Agency on 31 March 2022, the Erzurum 3rd High Criminal Court accepted the indictment against Arslan drafted by the Erzurum Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

 

The indictment cited Arslan’s news articles published by DİHA in 2014 and social media posts which included photos of YPG members as the basis for the accusations against the journalist. It was also argued that Arslan’s social media posts were “praising the terrorist organization by means of attempting to justify its methods which contained force, violence and threats.” The indictment further read, “It is understood that he had successively committed the crime of which he was accused through the press by publicly sharing these posts on the social networking site Facebook, which is used by almost everyone.”

 

Arslan’s trial will begin in the coming days.

 

 

Trial of former DİHA reporter adjourned until May

 

The 28th hearing in the trial of 76 people, including former reporter of the now-defunct DİHA news agency Engin Eren, was held on 1 April 2022 at the Batman 2nd High Criminal Court. The defendants are charged with “membership in a terrorist organization,” “violation of the Law no. 2565 on the Military Forbidden Zones and Security Zones,” and “violation of the Law no. 2911 on Public Assemblies and Demonstrations.”

 

The court ruled to separate files of 10 of the defendants and send the case file on the rest of the defendants, including Eren, to the prosecution so that it starts preparing its final opinion. The trial will resume on 20 May.

 

At least 56 journalists and media workers in prison

 

As of 1 April 2022, at least 56 journalists and media workers are in prison in Turkey, either in pre-trial detention or serving a sentence.

 

The full list can be accessed here.