Ahead of the first hearing in the trial of Istanbul Mayor and presidential candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu, and 406 other defendants on charges including bribery and extortion, Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnesty’s Deputy Director for Europe, said:
“After almost a year behind bars in pretrial detention, Ekrem İmamoğlu will take to the dock to face an absurd array of 142 charges set out in an almost 4,000 page indictment and carrying a ludicrous jail term of more than 2,300 years.
Ekrem İmamoğlu will take to the dock to face an absurd array of 142 charges carrying a ludicrous jail term of more than 2,300 years
“This politically-motivated prosecution, which is based almost entirely on secret witness testimony, is riddled with serious international fair trial and rule of law issues. Hundreds of thousands of pages of evidence have been submitted to this mass trial where defendants’ and their legal representatives’ ability to mount an effective defence is almost impossible. This prosecution bears the hall marks of an attempt to intimidate political opponents of the government and silence wider dissent in the country.
“This mass trial is the most extreme example of the disturbing weaponization of Türkiye’s justice system, whose independence has now been almost entirely hollowed out. Turkish authorities must end this travesty of justice and uphold the rule of law and human rights of everyone in the country.”
Background
Ekrem İmamoğlu is the elected Mayor of Istanbul and was declared as the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples’ Republican Party (CHP).
He faces allegations including running a criminal organization, bribery, embezzlement, money laundering, extortion and tender rigging. If found guilty he could face up to 2,352 years behind bars.
Most of the other 406 defendants in the trial worked for the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. 105 are currently in pretrial detention, and 170 have been released subject to judicial control orders.
Ekrem İmamoğlu faces other prosecutions including an espionage investigation the trial for which is set to begin on 11 May and carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
The hearing will take place on 9 March
