Prosecutor Demands Acquittal for “Minority Report”

The Supreme Court of Appeal’s Chief Prosecution has objected to the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeal’s Eighth Chamber on 12 July 2007 to overrule a local court’s decision to acquit Prof. Dr. Ibrahim Kaboglu and Prof. Dr. Baskin Oran in relation to the “Minority Rights and Cultural Rights Report”.

Objection: No "concrete danger" 

The objection referred to the fact that the case was opened when Article 312/2 of the Turkish Penal Code No. 765 was being applied, but that the academics were tried under Article 216/2 of the Turkish Penal Code No. 5337. Although the penalties foreseen in the articles are the same, the definition of the relevant crime is different in each article.

After the change on 1 June 2005, a crime has to be a “concrete danger”, i.e. there have to be “concrete facts which threaten public security”. According to the Chief Prosecutor the new Penal Code does not consider “the incitement to hostility of one social class, race, religion, sect or people of regional difference against another” sufficient grounds for prosecution if there is no such concrete danger.

First acquittal, then reversal 

On 10 May 2007, the Ankara 28th Penal Court had acquitted Prof. Dr. Kaboglu, the former president of the Human Rights Advisory Board, and Prof. Dr. Oran, the president of the sub-commission, of any crime committed under Article 216/1.

The court had used Article 216/1 because the Ministry of Justice had not given permission for a trial under Article 301 (“degrading Turkishness”).

Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor Hüseyin Boyrazoglu had then filed an appeal against the acquittal, and the case had been brought to the Supreme Court of Appeal’s Eighth Chamber, which had overruled the acquittal.

Now the objection of the Appeals Prosecution will be debated in the Supreme Court of Appeal’s Penal Board Meeting. (EÖ/AG)