On 3 March 2019, the Istanbul Regional Court of Justice announced its first decision on appeal against academics for signing the “We will not be party to this crime!” (Bu Suça Ortak Olmayacağız) peace petition prepared by Academics for Peace (Barış için Akademisyenler). In this ruling, the Court upheld an imprisonment sentence of one year and three months for Zübeyde Füsun Üstel, a political scientist retired from Galatasaray University. This ruling is the first to have exhausted all local remedies.

The investigation concerning the Gezi protests of 2013 has been concluded, and 16 persons, including Osman Kavala and Yiğit Aksakoğlu, who have both been detained pending trial, were indicted. It has been announced that the indictment was accepted on March 4, 2019 by Istanbul 30^th High Criminal Court and the first hearing will be held on June 24-25, 2019.

BİANET

The court of appeal has upheld the 15-month prison sentence previously given to Prof. Dr. Zübeyde Füsun Üstel, an academic signatory to the declaration entitled “We will not be a party to this crime” prepared by Academics for Peace.

In response to the absurd allegations levelled against Osman Kavala and Yiğit Aksakoğlu, who are both imprisoned pending trial, as well as 14 other civil society figures, all of whom are accused of “attempting to overthrow the government”, we, the undersigned human rights organizations, call for the escalating crackdown on and criminalization of civil society to end.