Nearly 200 anti-government protesters stood trial in Turkey Friday following mass protests in the country’s largest cities over the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
Approximately 189 activists, students and journalists endured preliminary court proceedings in two crowded courtooms in Istanbul. City judges heard opening remarks from defense counsel before ruling to divide the defendants into more reasonable groups.
Friday’s hearings began a long legal journey for the nearly 819 protesters indicted in Turkey over the last month for their actions during one of the country’s largest mass demonstrations. The defendants are charged with varying crimes, from not obeying police orders to disperse to carrying weapons, and face prison sentences of up to five years.
Those arraigned on Friday include dozens of students and eight journalists.
Several parents and supporters appeared outside the Istanbul courthouse, arguing that the protesters are being persecuted for political reasons.
International human rights organizations condemned Friday’s trials. Human Rights Watch called for the cases to be dismissed and argued that the state has no serious evidence to hold the protesters.
“Given the glaring absence of evidence, it is hard not to conclude that the intended purpose of these rushed trials is to send a warning against exercising the rights to peaceful protest or free expression,” the Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch, Hugh Williamson, said in a statement. “The prosecutor should be calling for these cases to be dropped unless there is direct and substantive evidence that particular individuals committed specific crimes.”
The Council of Europe, another human rights organization, concurred, calling for fair trials for all accused.
“The presumption of innocence, the use of pre-trial detention strictly as a measure of last resort and the protection of political expression,” must be “fully guaranteed,” the Council wrote.
The protesters and journalists were arrested following massive political protests in Turkey’s largest cities. The demonstrations were inspired by the arrest of Mr. Imamoglu on corruption charges last month. Mr. Imamoglu is a key political rival to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and has received the presidential nomination from the Turkish opposition party, the Republican People’s Party.
Protesters believe the arrest and charges are politically motivated and have called for his release.
The demonstrators were met with fierce opposition from police forces in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey’s capital. According to reports, protesters were hit with water cannons, pepper spray and rubber bullets following clashes with police.
