6 Released Pending Trial in KCK Case

Istanbul 23rd Hugh Criminal Court released Sadiye Eser pending a trial - journalist at Evrensel daily newspaper who was detained within KCK police raids on December 12. She was jailed after a prison term of 10 months on her first trial. Along with Eser, the court also released Ruken Çelik, Rıdvan Oğuz, Ramazan Atup, Felat Abik and Vaysi Özdemir. 

On December 12, police held simultaneous raids in Istanbul with KCK case, detaining several individuals including journalist Eser.

Istanbul 23rd Hugh Criminal Court held the case yesterday with some defendants making their defense in Kurdish. 

On the hearing, Eser said she was being tried for her journalism activity as she worked for Evrensel daily newspaper and Hayat TV before her arrest. 

She added that she followed several press conferences as a part of her job. “Why were these press conference portrayed as solely BDP protests?” she asked. 

“Just because I am Kurdish, I am easily being charged with ‘illegal organization membership’. No matter what your job is. If you are a chemical engineer and someone took your picture at a protest, you are charged with making molotov cocktails.” 

The court ruled the continuation of Hüseyin Eser and Hüseyin Akdoğan’s arrest. The trial will resume on December 12. (EA/BM)

* Click here to read the original article in Turkish.