University student Kemal Kurkut, who had come to Amed for the Newroz celebrations on March 21, 2017 from Malatya, was killed by police officer Y.Ş. at the police checkpoint. The second hearing in Y.Ş’s trial for “murder with possible intent” was held in Diyarbakır High Penal Court No.7, and police units surrounded the courthouse.

Kemal Kurkut’s mother Secan Kurkut and brother Ferhat Kurkut participated as the plaintiff, while Kurkut’s relatives, HDP MP Sibel Yiğitalp, İHD Deputy Co-chair Raci Bilici, HDP and DBP provincial administrators and members of the public participated as observers.

MOTHER KURKUT: “TYRANT, MURDERER!”

The Kurkut family’s lawyer Reyhan Yalçındağ Baydemir stated that Mother Secan Kurkut’s health is not well and would leave the courtroom after she spoke. Mother Kurkut said, “What kind of justice is this? What did Kemal do? What was Kemal’s punishment? They shot Kemal, without a trial, without an inquiry. I want Allah to punish him, not you. What did Kemal do? May Allah punish his murderer, that tyrant.”

The Court Chair interrupted Mother Kurkut and asked the mother be removed from the room.

LAWYER YALÇINDAĞ: “HE COULD HAVE BEEN STOPPED, THEY CHOSE TO KILL HIM”

Lawyer Reyhan Yalçındağ Baydemir submitted the CD with the footage of Kurkut’s shooting to the court, and demanded they be shown in the hearing. Yalçındağ spoke again after the court viewed the footage, and pointed out that the footage show that Kurkut could have been stopped without killing him.

NOT ARRESTED

After the murdering police officer spoke, the court announced the interim verdict and rejected the demand for the officer’s arrest due to the state of the evidence in the file, the way the incident happened, the report requested from the Forensic Medicine Institute not arriving, and that the evidence is not fully collected yet. The court ruled that the casefile be sent to the Forensic Medicine Institute, and rejected the demand to know whether an administrative inquiry had been launched against the defendant. The next hearing was scheduled for September 20 to have the missing documents completed.

YİĞİTALP: “THE GOVERNMENT CREATED THIS ATMOSPHERE”

HDP MP Sibel Yiğitalp made a statement in front of the court house after the hearing and said: “Today, if those who demand justice were not arrested, the police would not have killed Kemal. Because the government has created this atmosphere. Security members have been reduced to bodyguards for the government’s safety.