Guldunya Case May go to ECHR
Habibe Yilmaz Kayar, a lawyer from the Istanbul Bar Association, argued the Istanbul Bar has a right to take part in the case and said this participation was necessary. She said the court committee interpreted the notion of "being harmed by the crime" in its narrowest sense.
"As women, lawyers, and citizens, we have been harmed by this incident," said Kayar. She added that they would go to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) if necessary, and apply to the bodies of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
An Istanbul court continued to try Guldunya Toren's two brothers and uncle. Defendants Irfan and Ferit Toren, who are under arrest, attended the hearing. There is an arrest warrant against Mehmet Toren and he is still at large.
Guldunya Toren was first injured by gun shots and then murdered at the hospital where she was being treated for her injuries. The indictment calls for a prison sentence of a maximum of 28 years for Ferit Toren, citing the fact that he was under 18-years-old at the time of the murder.
Irfan Toren faces a prison sentence of 15 to 20 years for involvement in the murder. Mehmet Toren, if found, would face life in prison for provoking the murder.
Professor Dr. Nur Centel from the Marmara University, Deputy Associate Professor Dr. Hanife Zafer and Deputy Associate Professor Dr. Ozlem Cakmur presented the court with a statement saying that the Bar, women's organizations and women lawyers have the right to take part in the case.
In the statement, the women jurists reminded the court that Guldunya's family, who would have been expected to be harmed by her murder, is actually being accused of murdering her. "It cannot be assumed that those who decided on murdering Guldunya Toren, who provoked the murder and who killed her, have also been harmed by her death," said the statement.
The statement argued that interpreting the notion of "being harmed from the crime," in its narrowest sense did not serve the purpose. It added:
* Allowing bars, women's organizations or women as individuals to take part in this trial would both contribute to finding the truth, and also send an important message to the public that such incidents are condemned and not regarded as legitimate.
* By allowing women to take part in the trial, Turkey will have fulfilled an obligation of having ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). CEDAW requires countries to actively fight honor crimes. Turkey, by signing the convention has taken up this responsibility.
Despite the statement by the jurists, the court committee rejected the request by the Istanbul Bar, woman lawyers and women's organizations to take part in the trial. Women quitted the court room on the committee's decision.
"In honor crimes, every woman in the society is the one 'being harmed by the crime,' and thus all women have a right to play an active and effective role in the trial of the defendants," said lawyer Habibe Yilmaz Kayar. "We will insist on our demand to take part in the trial. We will object to the decision at a higher court."
"If we don't get what we want at the Supreme Court of Appeals, we will go to the ECHR and the bodies of CEDAW," she said. "This may create a situation in which Turkey may be seen as faulty because of discrimination against women."
Additional opportunity for defense
Judge Yilmaz granted an additional opportunity to defendant Irfan Toren to defend himself, citing the fact that an "additional indictment was prepared against him for involvement in a murder."
Irfan Toren said he was unaware of plans to murder Guldunya Toren and added he would have prevented the murder if he had known.
Witness Ibrahim Akyol said he was at the hospital on the day of the murder, heard an explosion and saw a couple of people running away. However Akyol said that he could not identify those who run away. (BB/EA/YE)