The Turkish Supreme Court of Appeals has rejected the Chief Prosecutor’s Office’s objection to the acquittal of scholar Fethullah Gulen, which was upheld by the appeals court in early March. Gulen had been charged with “establishing an illegal organization”. The objection was soundly defeated by a 16 to 7 vote.
Fethullah Gulen’s acquittal has been officially registered a third time following the objection of the Chief Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalçinkaya.
GULEN ACQUITED 3 TIMES
The Supreme Court of Appeals approved the previous decision of acquittal of Gulen by a 16 to 7 majority. Therefore Gulen’s acquittal has been registered irrevocably by the top court in Turkiye.
FIRST ACQUITAL
Gulen was tried on charges of “establishing an illegal organization to undermine the secular structure of the state. The court ruled that Gulen did not commit any of the crimes alleged by prosecutor Nuh Mete Yuksel and upheld Gulen’s acquittal.
SECOND ACQUITAL
The decision of acquittal was appealed and the 9th Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals decided that Fethullah Gulen did not commit any of the mentioned crimes and upheld Gulen’s acquittal unanimously.
Turkish authorities unlawfully arrest pregnant woman on alleged Gülen links
Emel Top Bayraktar, 29, a research assistant at Bingöl University in eastern Turkey, has been arrested for alleged links to the Gülen movement, despite being in the early stages of pregnancy, Bold Medya reported.
Truth and reconciliation in post-Erdoğan era
One way to repair the damage dealt by the Erdoğan government in the last couple of years and to provide some form of closure for the dark period of Erdoğan’s third term in government is to set up a truth and reconciliation commission. Without discounting the role of the criminal justice system, a truth commission can be utilized in a complementary role to help citizens move on with their lives in Turkey after colossal wrongdoings in the government.
Bilal Erdogan: Italy names Turkish president’s son in money laundering investigation allegedly connected to political corruption
Bilal Erdigan, son of the Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, is under investigation in Italy for money laundering, in connection, it has been claimed, with the 2013 corruption scandal that rocked the Turkish political establishment. The Bologna public prosecutor has opened a file on Bilal Erdogan after a key opponent of the Turkish regime officially denounced the president’s son, alleging he brought in large amounts of money to Italy last September to be recycled.
Neither Erdoğan nor EU the same after five years
Erdoğan is going to Brussels as the prime minister of Turkey who doesn’t even have ambassadors in three of its region’s important capital; Cairo, Tel Aviv and Damascus. A negotiation chapter was opened in November 2013 after a three-year freeze. Erdoğan had to sack the former EU minister from the cabinet because of the allegations in relation with a major graft probe in December 2013 and appointed Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu to that post.
Gülen calls on followers to adapt to PM’s teaching center closures
“If they close your homes, you should open dorms. If they close your dorms, you will open new homes. If they close your schools, you will respond by opening a university. And when they close your university, you should open ten schools. You should never stop marching,” Gülen said in a video that was posted at Herkül.org, a website close to the movement.
Questions over corruption and paralysis of politics [in Turkey]
The corruption crisis, the related ongoing judicial process and PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s stance towards this process have led many people to have serious concerns over justice and the latest developments have made me pose the following questions. I think that we strongly need honestly speaking and honestly thinking politicians to answer these questions for the sake of liberal democracy and universal values such as rule of law.
Latest News
Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison
Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney
Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement
ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment
New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement
European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests
ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases
Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade
Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet