Daily Milliyet Case Goes to Criminal Court

This week another case involving Turkish journalists has been transferred from a regular court to the newly erected “Specialized High Criminal Courts” that are regarded as a resurrection of the controversial State Security Courts (DGM) which were abolished as part of Turkey’s European Union membership reforms process.

The case of Dogan News Agency (DHA) reported Ihsan Dortkardes, mass circulation Turkish daily Milliyet Editor Hasan Cakkalkurt and the newspaper’s owner Aydin Dogan is based on a news report published in the journal on the way Kurdish internet sites reflected a speech made by Democratic Society Party (DTP) founding member Mehmet Hatip Dicle during a panel held in London.

Charged under the Anti-Terror Law (TMY) Dortkardes and Cakkalkurt face 5 years imprisonment each while the prosecutor demands a monetary fine from the newspaper’s owner and businessman, Aydin Dogan.

DTP’s Dicle himself has been added into the case on allegations of “conducting propaganda of the terrorist organization” before the investigation was completed at the Bagcilar 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance.

Meeting on October 5, Thursday under presiding judge Muhterem Bulut, the court passed a decision of no-jurisdiction in the current case and decided to send the file to the Specialized Criminal Court in Istanbul instead where the news item titled “Ocalan stamp on DTP panel” and dated January 25, 2006 will be prosecuted.

State Security Courts resurrected

This Thursday’s development regarding the Milliyet case is linked to the ongoing transfer of cases of journalists charged with "propaganda" and prosecuted at Criminal Courts of First Instance to the Specialized High Criminal Courts under recent amendments made to Turkey's Anti-Terror Law.

Initially subject to the transfers were a group of 4 Turkish journalists whose cases had been continuing at lower level courts.

Mass circulation daily Hurriyet newspaper reporter Sebati Karakurt's case where he was charged for an interview conducted with outlawed Kurdish Peoples' Congress (Kongra-Gel) was initially opened at a High Criminal Court but then transferred to a Criminal Court of First Instance. With a new decision taken under the Anti-Terror Law last month, his case, where editors Necdet Tatlican and Hasan Kilic are co-defendants, is to go back to a High Criminal Court.

Similarly, daily Milliyet newspaper reporter Namik Durukan who interviewed outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan's brother Osman Ocalan will also be tried at a High Criminal Court if his appeal against this decision is rejected.

The fact that the courts these newsmen will appear at are "Specialized High Criminal Courts" is seen as a resurrection of the controversial post-coup State Security Courts (DGM) which were abolished in 2004 under the European Union reforms. The primary difference being there being no military judges sitting on the bench in the new form. (EO/KO/II/YE)