Constitutional Court rules Aysel Tuğluk's right to a fair trial violated

Click to read the article in Turkish

The Constitutional Court has given a ruling of rights violation in a 2019 application by Aysel Tuğluk, an imprisoned Kurdish politician who has dementia.

In the criminal case filed against Tuğluk for attending an open-air meeting held by the Democratic Society Congress (DTK) on October 8, 2010, a ruling was given that the prosecution of Tuğluk should be postponed for three years and she should be under supervision for three years.

After an appeal filed by Tuğluk's attorneys was rejected by the Mardin 2nd Heavy Penal Court, the case was brought to the Constitutional Court.

Right to a fair trial

The Constitutional Court stated that the investigation started five years after the incident, Tuğluk was not allowed to benefit from defendant assistance during the trial, she was not provided access to the documents in the case file; and concluded that Tuğluk's right to a fair trial was violated.

Citing ECtHR verdicts and its previous verdicts, the top court said, "In the indictment, the actions of the applicant against her duty and responsibility towards this right, apart from attending the meeting, were not explained. There was no indication that the applicant was among the organizers or directors of the meeting subject to the application."

Compensation

No "punishable faulty acts" were found, the court said, noting, "The decision for the postponement of the prosecution was given just because Law No. 6352 had come into force. For this reason, it cannot be said that the court's reason was adequate for an intervention. A fair balance could not be achieved.

"The conclusion that putting the applicant under supervised release for three years by postponing the prosecution was not necessary for ensuring the legitimate aim of public order in the second paragraph of Article 34 of the Constitution."

The top court ruled for a retrial and Tuğluk should be paid 13,500 lira for immaterial damages.

On the other hand, the Constitutional Court recently rejected an application by Tuğluk against her arrest in the Kobanî investigation without examining the case "on the merits."

Speaking about the ruling, lawyer Reyhan Yalçındağ said the decision was "window dressing," noting, "They reject essential applications and give verdicts of violation in simple cases."

Aysel Tuğluk's trial and imprisonment

On December 29, 2016, when she was the Vice Co-Chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk was arrested along with seven other politicians from the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) and the Democratic Society Congress (DTK).

The indictment filed against Tuğluk, who was the DTK Co-Chair till September 2014, brought her statements to the press as well as the funerals that she attended as criminal evidence against the politician.

On March 16, 2018, the Ankara 17th Heavy Penal Court sentenced Aysel Tuğluk to 8 years in prison as per the Anti-Terror Law (TMK) no. 3713. Increasing this prison term by half, the court then gave a 12-year prison sentence to the politician. Lastly, it has decreased this prison sentence by one sixth and ruled that she shall be sentenced to 10 years in prison.

As Aysel Tuğluk's appeal to the Ankara Regional Court of Justice was rejected, her file was sent to the Court of Cassation.

Her mother's funeral

Aysel Tuğluk's mother Hatun Tuğluk lost her life in 2017. Upon her last will, her deceased body was brought to the İncek Cemetery in Ankara. Aysel Tuğluk left prison by permission and her mother was laid to rest; shortly afterwards, a group of 5-6 people gathered to protest the funeral.

The ones who attended the funeral said that this number gradually increased and they tried to attack the grave.

As the attacks continued, the deceased body of Hatun Tuğluk had to be removed from the ground and laid to rest somewhere else. One of the people who attacked the funeral turned out to have a picture with Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu at the police station.

Health problems

Aysel Tuğluk's elder brother Alaattin Tuğluk said that his sister had a memory loss after their mother's passing:

My sister didn't look fine. She asks the same question 3-4 times. She doesn't remember some things. For instance, when she wants to ask about someone from the family, she says, 'Who was that, who?' They are close people, it is impossible for her to not know them. I am concerned that this will come to an irreversible point and that we will lose my sister... I want treatment before it is too late. Let another committee examine her and give a decision accordingly. She is given 1-2 medications now. It is not enough. She will go [to jail] after her treatment ends.

About Aysel Tuğluk

Politician and lawyer.

She was the founding member and Co-Chair of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) and elected Diyarbakır MP in 2007-2009. She became the Van MP of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in 2011-2015. She served as the Vice Co-Chair of the HDP responsible for Law and Human Rights.

Aysel Tuğluk was also a member of the Society and Law Studies Foundation Executive Board, a member of the Human Rights Association (İHD) and the founder of the Patriotic Women's Association.

Born in Elazığ in 1965, she graduated from the Faculty of Law of İstanbul University and worked as a self-employed lawyer.

(RT/VK)