Academics for Peace process

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In the “Academics for Peace” trial in March 2016, four Turkish academics were charged with “terrorist propaganda” by the Turkish judiciary because they filed the petition entitled We will not be part of this crime against Turkey's 2015 offensive against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

petition

The petition, We Will Not Be Part Of This Crime, was published by the Academics For Peace group on January 11, 2016. The signatories included Latife Akyüz, Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Düzce, Esra Munger, Professor of Psychology at the Bosphorus University , and Muzaffer Kaya and Kivanc Ersoy, Professor of Mathematics at Mimar Sinan Üniversitesi . In it they called for an end to the "massacre" of the Kurdish population in southeastern Turkey . The addressee of the petition was the Turkish state. “Solving the conflict by force cannot be in the interests of the state either. We want to at least return to the previous one, that is, that the peace process is resumed, ”it says.

1127 Turkish scientists from 90 universities signed the petition. Since January 2016, a further 1,084 academics have signed the petition, which has meanwhile increased the number of signatories to 2,212. Following the sanctions on the signatories, 558 writers supported a similar appeal.

consequences

The signatories of the petition faced direct sanctions: scientists were arrested, dismissed or not renewed their employment contracts, some were denied permission to participate in academic activities abroad, teachers were indicted and suspended.

27 scientists were arrested for signing the petition. 14 signatories were arrested at the University of Kocaeli alone . 30 scientists were released and 38 more were fired. Some of them received death threats on social media. A teachers' union reported that 153 cases had been initiated against signatories to date. Nine teachers have been fired and another 27 have been suspended. As of June 2016, 513 disciplinary proceedings and 37 layoffs as well as early retirement and 11 forced resignations were reported. Criminal investigations are said to have been initiated against 421 of the scientists.

The signatories have violated a paragraph in the Criminal Code that prohibits propaganda for terrorist groups, as well as a paragraph that makes it a criminal offense to insult the Turkish nation and the Turkish Republic.

Under Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 10 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms , Turkey is obliged to protect the right to freedom of expression. The right to freedom of expression may only be restricted in certain ways, e.g. B. to prohibit propaganda for war or incitement to violence. Section 7/2 of the Turkish Anti-Terrorism Act prohibits “propaganda for a terrorist organization” or insulting Turkey's parliament and the country's courts. However, this provision can be interpreted broadly and does not expressly require that the propaganda serve to promote violent criminal methods. This paragraph has been used repeatedly in the past to punish non-violent expression of opinion regarding the rights of Kurds and the government's Kurdish policy.

As a result of the failed military coup attempt on July 15, 2016 , the situation for the Academics for Peace has worsened. On September 1, 2016, the government passed three emergency ordinances, with which a total of over 40,000 state employees who are believed to be linked to the coup plotters were alleged to have been dismissed. Among the 2346 dismissed academics there are 44 signatories of the Academics for Peace appeal. In an appeal for solidarity, the Academics for Peace point out that no appeal can be lodged against the dismissal under the emergency legislation and that the passports of those affected will be confiscated. As of March 17, 2017, the Academics for Peace website lists a total of 389 signatories removed from service by decree, dismissal or forced early retirement and 491 initiated disciplinary proceedings.

reaction

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reprimanded the 1000 signatories. He said that anyone wishing to pursue politics outside of parliament “should dig trenches or go into the mountains”, alluding to the Kurdish Workers' Party PKK. On another occasion he told diplomats that the human rights violations were not being committed by the Turkish state but by the PKK. "Yet this bunch of people who call themselves academics accuse the Turkish state in a statement". Erdoğan called the researchers "dark forces" and "traitors". "Anyone who eats the bread of this state but betrays it should be punished," said Erdoğan.

When the signatories wanted to invite international observers, Erdoğan said that this showed a “colonial mentality”.

In contrast, scientists and other people around the world expressed their solidarity with the signatories. The Berlin Social Science Center wrote: "We at the WZB declare our solidarity with Turkish scientists and support them in their right to freedom of expression." The non-profit organizations Research Institute on Turkey and Bostonbul from the USA have a fundraising campaign in March 2017 started to grant dismissed Academics for Peace a six-month scholarship equal to the Turkish minimum wage.

The day before the court ruling on the pre-trial detention of Akyüz, Munger, Kaya and Ersoy, President Erdoğan spoke out in favor of amending the anti-terror laws. The definition of “terrorism” should be broadened to include non-violent acts by writers, academics, journalists and NGO workers.

process

The scientists were charged with “propaganda for a terrorist organization” and “denigrating the Turkish nation”. The prosecutor argues: Anyone who describes the operations of the Turkish army as a “massacre” is arguing like the PKK. In doing so, the signatories were doing propaganda for terrorists.

The trial began on April 22nd, 2016. If convicted, the accused face up to five years in prison. After the first hearing, the accused were provisionally released after 40 days in pre-trial detention.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Scientists before the Turkish court: Trial for "terror propaganda". In: tagesschau.de. April 22, 2016, archived from the original on April 22, 2016 ; accessed on September 30, 2017 .
  2. ↑ She has been living as a forced emigrant in Frankfurt am Main since December 2016 , Frankfurter Rundschau , August 29, 2017
  3. ^ 3 Academics Arrested . In: Bianet - Bagimsiz Iletisim Agi . ( Online [accessed February 5, 2018]).
  4. ↑ Thomas Bormann: Turkey - Trial against critical scientists begins. In: deutschlandfunk.de. April 22, 2016, accessed May 6, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Ceylan Yeginsu: Turkey Releases Detained Academics Who Signed Petition Defending Kurds . In: The New York Times . January 15, 2016, ISSN  0362-4331 ( online [accessed April 22, 2016]).
  6. ↑ Turkey: Scientists in custody for Kurdish petition. In: www.handelsblatt.com. Retrieved April 22, 2016 .
  7. ↑ Cavidan Soykan: The Risk of freedom of expression in the Turkish universities. In: PERIPHERAL. Politics - Economy - Culture. Retrieved September 7, 2016 .
  8. ↑ SPIEGEL ONLINE, Hamburg Germany: Arrests after a peace call: Erdogan puts the police on the necks of scientists. In: SPIEGEL ONLINE. Retrieved April 23, 2016 .
  9. ^ Dismissal of Academics for Peace members from their posts. In: frontlinedefenders.org. Retrieved September 7, 2016 .
  10. ↑ Urgent Call for Solidarity! In: barisicinakademisyenler.net. Retrieved September 7, 2016 .
  11. ^ Rights violations against "Academics for Peace". Retrieved March 17, 2017 .
  12. ↑ Turkey: Erdogan arrests 27 scientists after government criticism. In: GERMAN BUSINESS NEWS. Retrieved April 22, 2016 .
  13. ↑ SPIEGEL ONLINE, Hamburg Germany: Arrests after a peace call: Erdogan puts the police on the necks of scientists. In: SPIEGEL ONLINE. Retrieved April 23, 2016 .
  14. ↑ WZB supports “Academics for Peace” | WZB. In: www.wzb.eu. Retrieved April 24, 2016 .
  15. ^ Online Campaign Stands in Solidarity with 'Academics for Peace' in Turkey. In: armenianweekly.com. March 14, 2017, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  16. ^ A Call for Support and Solidarity with Purged Academics for Peace in Turkey. In: peace-ed-campaign.org. March 15, 2017, accessed May 28, 2019 .
  17. ^ Academics detained for signing peace appeal - Amnesty Urgent Actions. In: ua.amnesty.ch. Retrieved April 24, 2016 .
  18. ↑ Turkey - Trial against critical scientists begins. In: Deutschlandfunk. Retrieved April 22, 2016 .