Calling for peace is still considered a crime in Turkey
Three-and-a-half years have passed since the Academics for Peace (AfP in short: Baris icin Akademisyenler in Turkish) boldly told Turkey’s government “we will not be a party to this crime.”
Two Academics for Peace have had their hearings at two courts. Presenting her statement of defense at the İstanbul 32nd Heavy Penal Court, Hazal Halavut has been asked by the Presiding Judge, “Why didn’t you make a call to the terrorist organization?”
Trial of academics, who have been charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" for having signed the declaration entitled "We will not be a party to this crime" prepared by the Academics for Peace, continued in İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse today (June 19).
Upon the request of lawyer Eyüboğlu, the court has ruled that the Constitutional Court ruling on Academics for Peace shall be awaited till a verdict is given for three academics. One academic has also been given a deferred prison sentence of 15 months.
Trial of academics, who have been charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" for having signed the declaration entitled "We will not be a party to this crime" prepared by the Academics for Peace, continued in İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse yesterday (June 18).
Starting with the publication of an ‘Academics for Peace’ petition in January 2016, and further increasing after the attempted coup in July 2016, large numbers of state employees in Turkey have suffered dismissal or other sanctions without due process. Among them are several thousands of academics. Many Turkish universities have actively collaborated in the implementation of these government measures against their employees. Under its Human Rights Policy, Ghent University considers such universities as (co-)perpetrators of serious human rights violations.
MP Çakırözer has visited Üstel and Düzkan in Eskişehir Prison on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, said, "On the day of the feast, we demand freedom for all journalists, intellectuals who are in prisons."
The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) MP Utku Çakırözer has visited journalist Ayşe Düzkan and Prof. Füsun Üstel at the Eskişehir Women's Open Prison.
Füsun Üstel, respected academic in history, nationalism and issues of identity, is the first of the Academics for Peace to be imprisoned for signing the “We will not be party to this crime!” petition. This ruling will likely influence the pending cases of other Academics for Peace. Despite the threat of imprisonment, Üstel stood up for her belief that condemning human rights violations or calling for peace is not a crime.
Ayse Gül Altinay, Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Gender and Women’s Studies Center at Sabanci University in Istanbul, Turkey, was one of the cooperation partners of Women’s Museum Istanbul to organise the the first Asian and European conference of women’s museums “Feminist Pedagogy: Museums, Memory Sites, Practices of Remembrance” in Istanbul in October 2018.
Imprisoned academic Füsun Üstel’s request for stay of execution has been rejected. While the upper court has also rejected the objection of her lawyers against this ruling, one of the judges has expressed a dissenting opinion, referring to freedom of expression.
