UPDATE: On 19 November 2021, Şeyhmus Gökalp was acquitted of all terrorism-related charges by the Diyarbakır 10th Heavy Penal Court. The Prosecutor objected to this acquittal, and this objection is still pending.
Dr Şeyhmus Gökalp, a physician, member of the High Disciplinary Committee of the Turkish Medical Association and a volunteer of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey currently stands accused of providing healthcare for members of a terrorist organisation in a hospital, even though he was not present and did not work at the hospital at the time of the allegation.
Tried under Article 314/2 of the Turkish Criminal Code, Dr Gökalp risks between seven to fifteen years of imprisonment if found guilty next Friday 19 November 2021.
Judicial harassment has now become a frequent practice in the repressive arsenal of the Turkish authorities. It is now increasingly used as a threat to civil society in conditions where the rule of law is eliminated, and the judiciary lacks independence.
EuroMed Rights, the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims, the Human Rights Association and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey are deeply concerned that the charges brought against Dr Gökalp are an attempt to silence him for simply exercising his professional and ethical duties to provide healthcare and defend human rights. They call for the immediate cessation of all judiciary charges against Dr Gökalp. They also demand an end to the abuse of anti-terrorism legislation to silence dissent and crackdown on human rights activities.
A courtesy translation in Turkish is available here.