Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk, who was released from prison in October 2022 as she suffers from, is now being forced to make her "defense" in a new lawsuit against her.
Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk was released from prison after the decision of the Constitutional Court (AYM) that ruled that she could not continue to stay in prison because she was suffering from dementia.
After her release on 27 October 2022, Tuğluk was accused of "being a member of a terrorist organization" in a new lawsuit.
The trial was held on 5 May at the Diyarbakır 4th High Criminal Court. Tuğluk did not attend the hearing due to her illness.
Tuğluk's lawyer, Serdar Çelebi, said that the execution of her client's sentence was postponed until she recovered, and demanded to put the trial on "hold".
The Court, however, set up an interim decision for Tuğluk to attend the hearing via Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS).
Tuğluk's lawyers, Çelebi and Reyhan Yalçındağ, objected to the continuation of their clients' trial and to her being forced to present her defense.
The lawyers pointed to the ATK's report that states that her client "cannot lead her life in prison alone".
In the appeal petition, the lawyers stated that it was not possible for Tuğluk to attend the hearings or make a defense, and that "the continuation of the prosecution against their client will be determined by whether she is in a position to make a defense and whether she has criminal capacity."
