The Appeal Judgment Given by the Regional Court: A Document of Criminalzing the Demand for Peace
On February the 25th, 2019, Istanbul Regional Court of Justice has given its final verdict on the case of Prof. Dr. Füsun Üstel. The decision dismisses the appeal of the verdict, which was given last year by the court of first instance, and thereby gives a definitive judgment the 15 months of imprisonment for Prof. Üstel.
The text of the judgment reads as follows:
TURKISH REPUBLIC
ISTANBUL REGIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
3RDPENAL CHAMBER
IN THE NAME OF THE TURKISH NATION
APPEAL JUDGEMENT
Case-Decision Nr: 2018/916
Docket Nr – 2019/250
Case Nr : 2018/916
Docket Nr: 2019/250
DECISION REVIEWED;
COURT Istanbul 32ndAssize Court
DATE April04, 2018
NUMBER Case No: 2017/54 and Decision No: 2018/88
VERDICT Propaganda for a Terrorist Organization
DEFENDANT Zübeyde Füsun Üstel
DATE OF CRIME January 11, 2016
CRIME
VERDICT Sentence in pursuance of Article 7/2-1, and 7/2-2 ofLaw No. 371; Articles 62/1, and 53 of Turkish Penal Code
APPELLANT Counsel for the defendant
Upon application for appeal against conviction by the local court, the time of the application, the quality of the verdict and the case pursuant to the date of crime were reviewed.
As the application is not inadmissible on any ground, the Court has examined the substance of the application.
Following the examination of the reports and documents that reflect the process of hearing where the conscientious opinion was formed, the content of the justification and the whole case;
It is observed that the judgement of the Court does not include any illegality, neither in substance nor in procedure; that there is no deficiency in the evidence and procedures; that the findings are well supported by evidence; that the acts were identified correctly and fall within the definition of the crime established by law; and that the sentence is in accordance with the law. As the grounds presented by the counsel for the appellant in his application for appeal do not appear well-founded, in pursuance of Article 280/1-a of the CMK (Law of Criminal Procedure), the Court DISMISSES THE APPEAL ON SUBSTANTIAL GROUNDSand holds that the case shall be referred back to the court of first instance that issued the conviction;
The judgement was rendered by majority, Judge Nihat Demirkol dissenting, on February 25, 2019, and it is definitive, in pursuance of Articles 284 and 286/2-a of the CMK.
- SARIÇAM S. ÖZTÜRK N. DEMİRKOL T.GEMEÇ
President Judge Judge Registrar
40019 39876 98282 58801
(e-signed) (e-signed) (e-signed) (e-signed)
DISSENTING VOTE
It can be observed that the statement, which is the subject of the crime stated in the indictment, includes, in short, accusations against “the State of the Republic of Turkey, committing deliberately planned massacre, mass execution of people in certain places, implementing massacre and deliberate deportation toward the people in the region”, and similar allegations. By the allegations and accusations with this content, stated within the frame of the indictment, the State and Government of the Republic of Turkey are publicly insulted, and thus the existing statement, which was written and issued in such form, goes beyond the expression of opinion and constitutes a crime, so that the act of the applicant falls within the crime of “publicly insulting the State of the Republic of Turkey, the Government of the Republic of Turkey”, defined in Article 301/1 of the Turkish Penal Code. Thus, I do not agree with the majority decision to dismiss the applicant’s appeal against the conviction for the crime of propagandizing for a terrorist organization. In my opinion, the local court conviction should be overturned; our Court should order a stay of proceedings to apply for permission of investigation, since according to the Article 301/4 of the Turkish Penal Code the investigation of this crime is subjected to the permission of the Ministry of Justice; henceforth, depending on the result of the application, a judgement shall be rendered, that would also assess the defendant’s act against Article 44 of the Turkish Penal Code.
Dissenting Judge (98282)
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