Semra Pelek
At the trial of five journalists who were allegedly tortured while being detained during a commemoration for journalists Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin—killed in Syria—a new prosecutor was appointed to the case just half an hour before the hearing and requested that the judicial control measures continue. In their defense statements, the journalists recounted being subjected to torture, handcuffing behind the back, and physical violence. Yağmur Filiz stated that a police officer who detained her by choking her said, “Yes, I’m torturing you and I’m proud of it.”
Journalists Zeynep Kuray, Mahsum Sağlam, Pelin Laçin, Yadigar Aygün, and university student Yağmur Filiz are standing trial at the Istanbul 39th Criminal Court of First Instance for attending a press statement in Şişhane to commemorate Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin, journalists who were killed in Syria. The Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) is providing legal defense for journalist Zeynep Kuray. The journalists are charged with violating the Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations.
“This case should never have been opened”
Journalist Mahsum Sağlam said, “Let me say what should be said at the end, right at the beginning: This case should never have been opened. We hadn’t even gathered yet; we were detained during an ID check.”
Referring to murdered journalists such as Abdi İpekçi, Musa Anter, and Metin Göktepe, Sağlam said, “The deaths of Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin are a continuation of this. As journalists, we have no safety. These murders are attacks on our right to life. We were exercising our right to protest.” He stated that they were held in handcuffs behind their backs for eight hours while in custody: “This is torture. I want those responsible for this torture to be prosecuted.”
“Commemorating a Kurdish journalist is treated as a crime”
Zeynep Kuray said a propaganda campaign had started claiming those killed in Syria were “not journalists,” which prompted them to make a public statement in their memory.
“We were detained before even gathering. They beat us while taking us through a corridor of police officers, kept us in handcuffs behind our backs in a vehicle for hours. We spent a night in detention and were not allowed to meet our lawyers,” Kuray said.
“Today, we can hold protests in front of a consulate for journalists killed by Israel without any problems. But when it’s a Kurdish journalist who was killed, they stand in our way like a wall and detain us with torture. This is injustice,” she added.
“Cihan Bilgin and Nazım Daştan were killed in a vehicle marked ‘Press.’ They were accused of being terrorists. Now I’m on trial. My KCK Press case is still open. If I die, will they say ‘Commemorating Zeynep Kuray is a crime?’” she said, rejecting the charges against her.
“I have a heart condition and they used reverse handcuffs; the police officer who tortured me must be prosecuted”
In her defense statement, journalist Yadigar Aygün said, “Before the protest even began, while our IDs were being checked, they cornered us against a wall and detained us with torture.” She emphasized that commemorating journalists and protesting is not a crime.
She noted that they were not taken to the hospital while in custody: “They put us in a tent like a Red Crescent tent and said, ‘If you have a complaint, say it.’ Medical check-ups in a tent—what century is this practice from? Also, one police officer filmed us in custody using his personal phone. All of this is torture,” she said.
“Despite having a heart condition, I was handcuffed behind my back,” Aygün stated, demanding prosecution of the officers responsible: “I want the police officer to be prosecuted.”
Aygün rejected the accusations and said, “Commemorating journalists and protesting are not crimes.”
“They threatened to put us in yellow body bags”
Journalist Pelin Laçin said they were detained before even gathering for the commemoration and were kept handcuffed behind their backs in a police vehicle for eight hours. “They banned us from speaking in the vehicle and said, ‘If you speak, we’ll kill you too and put you in yellow body bags.’ One police officer smoked in the vehicle for eight hours. I told him I had asthma, but he continued,” Laçin said.
She also stated that a police officer offered her a deal to cooperate against other journalists, that she was physically harassed, and that a female officer filmed her in detention. “I am filing a complaint against the police officers. Protesting is a constitutional right,” she said.
“The police officer told me ‘I’m torturing you and I’m proud of it’”
University student Yağmur Filiz said she went to Şişhane Square to join the protest and that they were surrounded by police without being shown a ban order, which she later learned was fake.
“I was at the very back of the group. I saw that all the journalists were being detained with torture,” she said. She described her experience during detention as follows: “One police officer twisted my arms behind my back and grabbed my neck. I said, ‘Why are you choking me?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’m torturing you and I’m proud of it.’ In a panic, I called him ‘stupid’ and ‘idiot.’ These words are not insults—they’re the defensive reflex of someone being tortured.”
Filiz added that during the eight hours they were held in the vehicle, they were subjected to torture and insults, the medical examination was not conducted properly, and the signs of assault were not recorded.
“This case shows how the political authorities view journalists”
Attorney Didare Hazal Sümeli from the MLSA Legal Unit said that about 300 people were detained during the same protest, and that another group of journalists had stood trial at the Istanbul 24th High Criminal Court on charges of “terror propaganda” and were acquitted. “They were prosecuted for carrying photos of Nazım and Cihan and were acquitted. Our clients didn’t carry photos, so their files were separated, and they are being tried here today. The fact that this trial has lasted more than a year is itself a form of torture,” she said.
One of the journalists’ lawyers, Gülizar Tuncer, began her defense with a procedural objection. She noted that if the SEGBİS (video conferencing) system had been used, the trial wouldn’t have lasted so long. “This file reveals not only the political authority’s stance toward journalists but also its attitude toward rights, freedoms, and the judiciary,” Tuncer said.
“Journalists were surrounded and tortured even during ID checks. There’s no need to even present a defense in this case. The situation is clear. An immediate acquittal must be granted,” she said, emphasizing that it is not the journalists who should be on trial, but the police officers who tortured them.
The hearing began on time and lasted one hour and 40 minutes.
It was noted that a new prosecutor was appointed to the case approximately 30 minutes before the hearing. The new prosecutor requested that the judicial control measures against the journalists remain in place.
The judge ruled to lift the judicial control measures and exempt the defendants from appearing at future hearings. The trial was adjourned to May 8 at 10:00 a.m.
