Release Order For Füsun Erdoğan

8 socialists including journalist and bianet writer Füsun Erdoğan has been ordered for release within the MLKP case. The ruling came 8 years after the initial detention. 

It was said that the ruling was issued according to the reduction of arrest terms from 10 to 5 years and the removal of Special-Duty courts within Turkey's 5th row of judicial reforms. 

According to the information provided by Erdoğan’s attornet Zülfü Erdoğan, Istanbul 20th High Criminal Court sent the ruling to Gebze Prison where Erdoğan is being kept as inmate. 

Füsun Erdoğan is expected to be released around 1:30pm local time. 

What happened?

On September 8, 2006, police detained Füsun Erdoğan and 22 suspects within an operatation against  the "illegal" Marxist Leninist Communist Party (MLKP). 

Four days after her detention, Füsun Erdoğan, coordinator of "Özgür Radyo", has been arrested by Beşiktaş High Criminal Court and sent to Paşakapısı Prison in Üsküdar, Istanbul. 

On November 4, 2013, Special-duty Istanbul 10th High Criminal Court sentenced Füsun Erdoğan and other socialists to life within the MLKP case. 

In the meanwhile, President Abdullah Gul ratified a series of judicial reforms allowing compulsory arrest periods from 10 to 5 years in trials, as well as the removal of Turkey's special-duty courts. 

Upon the judicial reforms, Erdogan's advocates requested Istanbul 4th High Criminal Court to release their client, which faced rejection. Advocated made a second request to Istanbul 5th High Criminal Court, which was also rejected. 

Following the removal of special-duty courts, the MLKP case tranferred to Istanbul 2nd High Criminal Court where Erdogan's lawyers made another objection. That court also declined the request for release. 

ÖYM'lerin kaldırılmasının ardından MLKP dosyası İstanbul 2. Ağır Ceza Mahkemesi'ne gönderildiği için avukatlar bu mahkemeye de tahliye talebinde bulunmuşlardı. Bu mahkeme de tahliye taleplerini reddetti.

Erdogan's advocate lastly applied to Turkey's Constitutional Court, saying that her long arrest period during the trials was unlawful. (HK/BM)

* Click here to read the article in Turkish.