Journalist Mehmet Güleş sentenced to prison for 'terror propaganda' after retrial
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Journalist Mehmet Güleş has been sentenced to 1 year, 9 months and 25 days in prison for "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" due to news articles he shared on social media in December 2022.
Güleş had previously been sentenced to 3 years, 1 month and 15 days in prison for the same charges, but the Court of Cassation had ordered a retrial.
At his second trial in December 2022, Güleş and his lawyer Resul Temur participated through video conference from the Diyarbakır Courthouse. The prosecutor requested that Güleş be punished for "propagandizing for a terrorist organization."
The journalist argued that the news articles he shared were from the Dicle News Agency (DİHA) where he used to work and that he was simply doing his job as a journalist. He claimed that the charges against him were a violation of freedom of thought and expression.
Güleş's lawyer Temur stated that the images in question were part of the news articles and that disseminating news is a fundamental element of freedom of the press. He also cited Article 7 of the Anti-Terror Law, which states that "expression of thoughts for the purpose of criticism or news reporting shall not constitute a crime if the scope of the criticism or news reporting does not exceed the limit of fair and objective criticism or news reporting."
Despite these arguments, the court ruled that Güleş was guilty of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" and sentenced him to 1 year, 9 months, and 25 days in prison.
What happened?
Mehmet Güleş, a former reporter for the Dicle News Agency (DİHA), was detained and arrested at the Elazığ Courthouse in December 2016 while following a news story. He was later indicted for reporting news, making phone calls to sources, and posting on social media. The indictment included a photo of him wearing traditional Kurdish clothes called "şal û şepik" as evidence.
Güleş was charged with "being a member of a terrorist organization" and "propagandizing for a terrorist organization." He was convicted and sentenced to 6 years, 3 months for "membership" and 3 years, 1 month, 15 days for "propaganda."
Although the appeals court upheld both prison sentences, the Court of Cassation only confirmed the sentence for "membership" in October 2018. They did not review the appeal against the "propaganda" verdict because the sentence was less than five years.
However, with a legal amendment allowing such sentences to be brought to the top appeals court, Güleş appealed the sentence of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization." The Court of Cassation overturned the sentence, concluding that it was "disproportionate."
In 2018, Güleş filed an individual application to the Constitutional Court, claiming that his "freedom of expression was violated," but it was rejected in January 2023.
After serving his prison sentence for "membership," he was released from Karakoçan Type T Prison on August 13, 2021.
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(HA/VK)