'The AKP will be remembered as a killer of lawyers'

Lawyer Ayşegül Çağatay, who visited her colleague Ebru Timtik who is on death fast, stressed that if the demands are not accepted, this government will go down in history as the one that killed lawyers.

Lawyers who are members of the Contemporary Lawyers Association (ÇHD) and People's Law Bureau (HHB) are among the people whose life has changed dramatically following the contradictory statements given by informer Berk Ercan.

The lawyers, who were sentenced to years of imprisonment on the sole basis of these confessions, turned their hunger strike into death fast demanding a fair trial for both their clients and themselves.

Lawyer Ayşegül Çağatay went to visit HHB member Ebru Timtik, who has turned her hunger strike into death fast, and her colleagues prisoners Oya Aslan, Barkın Timtik, Selçuk Kozağaçlı, Behiç Aşçı, in Silivri Prison No. 9.  

Lawyer Çağatay talked to ANF about the death of Grup Yorum member Helin Bölek, the situation of her colleagues and the ongoing injustice.

Çağatay said the visit she had on 6 April was a closed one, due to the coronavirus and added that she was given a mask and disinfectant. She pointed out that only a small plastic bottle of bleach and a small plastic bottle of liquid soap were distributed to the prisoners as a precaution during the coronavirus emergency.

Confirming that the purchase of books and clothes during this period has completely stopped, Çağatay said that if a new detention occurs, clothes can be given only in the first week.

'Health situation of Lawyer Behiç Aşçı not good'

Stating that the lawyers' morale was generally good, Çağatay added that Barkın Timtik and Oya Aslan had extended their hunger strikes until 8 April with the aim of supporting Ebru Timtik and Aytaç Ünal, while other lawyers ended their hunger strikes.

Çağatay pointed out that the health situation of lawyer Behiç Aşçı, who carried out a prolonged death fast during the F-Type Prisons protest, was not good and stated that they would apply for his release, given that he falls in the risk category established during the epidemic.

Çağatay said that Barkın dropped to 50 kilos due to the hunger strike and added that Selçuk Kozağaçlı is in good condition.

Çağatay is not only a colleague of lawyer Ebru Timtik, who has been on hunger strike since 5 April when she turned it to death fast, but also a cellmate.

Çağatay said that Timtik, who dropped to 52 kilos, welcomed her as she was dealing with the pain for Helin Bölek's death.

Emphasizing that Helin Bölek had to use her body to demand freedom of expression and be free of singing, Çağatay said: "People are now on death fast for their constitutional rights. Helin was on death fast for freedom of expression and singing. Mustafa Kocak also went on death fast demanding to be tried fairly. Mustafa was given an aggravated life sentence on the sole statements given by an informer named Berk Ercan."

Çağatay, who described Helin Bölek as "a very lively, life-loving, dynamic  and lively young woman with a unique laugh", said that she had chosen this resistance to live and make live.

Speaking about the attitude of the Bar Associations of Turkey Çağatay stated that the bar associations developing discourse on all kinds of subjects made very superficial explanations when it comes to lawyers in prison.

However, Çağatay pointed out that these bar associations recognised their mistakes in dealing with the issue of lawyers in prison who were on hunger strike in 2019 and promised that they would do whatever they needed to ensure their voices are heard.