Students Jailed in Turkey for Protesting Killing of Fellow Students

Five students from Dicle University who boycotted their school because of the killing of two fellow students Mahsun Karaoğlan and Aydın Erdem by the police were sentenced to a total of 57 years in prison for several of offences, reports BIA News Center.

Defence lawyer Mehmet Nuri Deniz talked to Bianet about the hearing before the Diyarbakır 6th High Criminal Court held on Mar. 6. Deniz said that the students were convicted of “committing a crime on behalf of an illegal organization without being a member of the organization,” “spreading propaganda for an illegal organization,” “obstructing education,” and “harming public property”.

Detained defendants Abdullah Nas, Talat Uçar, Sinan Kaplan and Cihan Bahar received prison terms of eleven years and eight months each. Defendant Mehmet Aydın, tried un-detained, was handed down a prison sentence of ten years and five months.

A lawyer announced their intention to appeal the latest decision.

Karaoğlan and Erdem, third year students at the Math department of the Dicle University, were killed in the course of an armed intervention by the police during a protest march in Urfa in 2009. The demonstration marked the birthday of Abdullah Öcalan, imprisoned leader of the outlawed armed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).