Court Rules To Confiscate Books By Prominent Journalists

A local court has decided to confiscate books by two prominent Turkish journalists after they were found during an operation on a cell where suspected militants of the outlawed Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement (YDG-H) were detained.

A total of three books focusing on the Kurdish problem by journalists Hasan Cemal and Tuğçe Tatari will be confiscated after the Third Criminal Court of Peace in southeastern Gaziantep province decided to remove them from bookstores for being seized during an operation. The books were charged with "spreading terrorist propaganda to the extent of encouraging violence" and "praising crime and criminal activity."

and "Çözüm Sürecinde Kürdistan Günlükleri" (Kurdistan Diaries during the Resolution Process), and Tatari's "Anneanne, Ben Aslında Diyarbakır'da Değildim" (Grandmother, I wasn't really at Diyarbakır) were also seized inside the flat of a suspect identified as H.V.

The prosecutor's office litigated later on Oct. 11, demanding the confiscation of all publications seized during the operation. The court ruled for the confiscation of the books on Dec. 4, arguing they spread terrorist propaganda and praised criminal activity.

"The investigation shows that the seized material spreads terrorist propaganda by legitimizing the methods of the terror organization that involve compulsion, violence or threats," the ruling said.

Speaking to daily Radikal, Tatari's lawyer, Aslı Kazan Gilmore, defined the decision as "against the constitution and laws," and "a violation of the right to express or disseminate opinions."

"We are facing an unjust and illegal decision by the criminal court of peace that was given after government policy on the Kurdish question shifted," Gilmore said, adding they would appeal to the Constitutional Court, if necessary.

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