Turkey: Journalist Buse Söğütlü Stands Before Trial For Her Tweet About The Notorious Judge
Location: Turkey, Istanbul
Date: October 14, 2020Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
First hearing of the case against Gazete Yolculuk journalist (former student journalist at Cumhuriyet) Buse Söğütlü was held today. An investigation was launched against the journalist at Cumhuriyet Newspaper, for her twitter post criticizing the judge of Istanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court.
The indictment was completed and presented to the court on March 23rd, 2020. Subject matter of the two-page-long indictment was Söğütlü’s posts regarding the judge of Istanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court that ruled for the arrest of lawyers from People’s Law Office and Progressive Lawyers Association. Said post was about the verdicts of some cases that the judge oversaw. The judge was mentioned as a “victim” in the indictment.
Subject matter of the accusation was Söğütlü’s tweet, quoting an article published at Daily Yolculuk, where she works, and saying “If Hitler came out of his grave and (…) sat in his chair, more or less, he would use the same phrases as well. Professional ethics and all aside; one should carry the weight of the chair he is sitting in.” The judge had ordered the lawyers standing before trial “to stop talking to each other or that he would change their seats”.
In this trial, Judge Akın Gürlek sentenced ÇHD (Progressive Lawyers Association) lawyers to over 159 years in prison.
Söğütlü, through this post, was claimed to have “put the aforementioned judge in the target of armed terrorist organisation DHKP-C and other marginal leftist organisations”.
The indictment accused Söğütlü of “identifying officials on anti-terror duties as targets” according to the article 6/1 of the Anti-Terror Law and “membership of armed terrorist organisation” according to the article 314/2 of the Turkish Penal Code. Within this scope she was requested to be sentenced to, from six years to 13 years of imprisonment.
During today’s hearing Buse Söğütlü stood behind her words likening the attitude of Judge Akın Gürlek to judges from National Socialist party members back in Nazi Germany who were instructed to act with no judicial independence but rather to “think what would Hitler do” when they are handed down a case. She said that "I am a journalist and the duty of a journalist is to tell the truths to the public and express the criticisms.".
Judge Akın Gürlek is indeed one of the most notorious figures in Turkey’s judiciary, he has been appointed to every single crucial case concerning the opposition.
Akın Gürlek, recently ruled on lifting off the status of Enis Berberoğlu as a parliamentary member despite the clear directions of the Constitutional Court.
As the Presiding Judge of the İstanbul 26th Heavy Penal Court, Akın Gürlek also sentenced Cumhuriyet newspaper reporter Canan Coşkun to 2 years, 3 months in prison on charge of 'turning a counterrorism official into a target'.
He was also the Presiding Judge of the court which sentenced CHP İstanbul Chair Canan Kaftancıoğlu to 9 years, 8 months in prison and ruled that former Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş should be sentenced to 4 years, 8 months and former HDP MP Sırrı Süreyya Önder to 3 years, 6 months in prison.
He also gave prison sentences to current Chair of Turkish Medical Association (TTB) Şebnem Korur Fincancı and Gençay Gürsoy in the trial of Academics for Peace, who faced terror charges for having signed the declaration "We will not be a party to this crime."
He is currently the Presiding Judge of the court that hears the Hrant Dink murder case filed into the assassination of the journalist.
Buse Söğütlü’s lawyer during today’s hearing talked about all such rulings and how he is constantly moved from one court to another specifically to look after these cases making his independence open to questioning and criticism. Erman Öztürk, criticizing that even an indictment has been accepted said: "We, as her attorneys, said that there was no crime and no matter in dispute. While it was a file that should have ended in non-prosecution, a lawsuit has been filed as the aggrieved party is Akın Gürlek. We said it to the judges as well; as the prosecutor could not give a decision of non-prosecution because the complainant is Akın Gürlek, he had to lodge an indictment.”
The hearing is adjourned to December 30, 2020 while the prosecutor prepares his opinion on the subject matter.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is indeed worried about the status of the judiciary in Turkey and stands with Buse Söğütlü’s right to freedom of expression. Each day a new journalist is put to trial for expressing their freedom of speech and performing their professional duties. We call upon the Council of Europe to work with Turkish authorities in order to ensure safety (including safety from retaliation) of journalists.
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The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ. Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org
The Coalition For Women In Journalism closely monitors the incidents in Turkey with great concern. Since March 8, Women's Day, police violence against women journalists increasingly continues in the country. As the coalition, we urge the Turkish state to provide a free environment for journalists. Following the news is our most fundamental democratic right to report. We demand the immediate release of our detained colleagues. Journalism is not a crime. Journalism cannot be prevented.
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