Turkey : PEN condemns continuing judicial harassment of Pınar Selek

(Lon­don, 5 Decem­ber 2014) The ongoing judi­cial harass­ment of Pınar Selek makes a mocke­ry of the Tur­kish jus­tice sys­tem, PEN Inter­na­tio­nal, PEN Ame­ri­can Cen­ter, and Ger­man PEN said today. Selek, a Tur­kish socio­lo­gist and femi­nist, faces rene­wed charges of invol­ve­ment in the 1998 Istan­bul Spice Bazaar explo­sion after today’s hea­ring at the 15th High Cri­mi­nal Court in Istan­bul. Selek faces life in pri­son if found guil­ty.

‘Pınar Selek’s 16-year ordeal feels more like a chap­ter out of Kaf­ka than a serious judi­cial under­ta­king,’ said Katy Glenn Bass, Depu­ty Direc­tor of Free Expres­sion Pro­grams at PEN Ame­ri­can Cen­ter. ‘This is the fifth time Selek has been tried, in the absence of any reliable evi­dence impli­ca­ting her in the case.’

Selek has been on trial for 16 years over a 1998 explo­sion that killed seven and inju­red 100 in the Istan­bul Spice Bazaar. Selek has been acquit­ted of all charges three times (in 2006, 2008 and 2011) due to the tes­ti­mo­ny of expert wit­nesses that clai­med that the cause of the explo­sion was a gas leak rather than a bomb, though courts have orde­red retrials after each of these acquit­tals. Her fourth trial resul­ted in a convic­tion in Janua­ry 2013 when Selek was han­ded an aggra­va­ted life sen­tence, although this convic­tion was over­tur­ned by Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals on 11 June 2014 on pro­ce­du­ral grounds. Selek has fled Tur­key as a result of the judi­cial harass­ment against her and now lives abroad.

‘After 16 years of trials and retrials, the Tur­kish govern­ment should be embar­ras­sed that this case remains on the court’s docket. It is long past time to end Pınar Selek’s judi­cial per­se­cu­tion and acquit her of all charges,’ said Carles Tor­ner, Exe­cu­tive Direc­tor of PEN Inter­na­tio­nal.

‘Pinar Selek was in our Wri­ters-in-Exile Pro­gram from Decem­ber 2009 until Novem­ber 2011. We are dee­ply sho­cked that this poli­ti­cal and judi­cial scan­dal has not yet come to an end. All our sym­pa­thy and soli­da­ri­ty are with Pinar and her fami­ly and friends’, said Regu­la Venske, Gene­ral Secre­ta­ry of Ger­man PEN. The next hea­ring of Selek’s trial will be held on 19 Decem­ber 2014.

http://www.pen-international.org/newsitems/turkey-pen-condemns-continuing-judicial-harassment-of-pinar-selek/