Şık faces 12 years in jail over accusations against police, judges
Journalist Ahmet Şık, who was released pending trial in a coup plot case on March 12 of this year, now faces charges for statements made to the press as he was leaving prison in which he accused police officers, judges and prosecutors involved in the case of conspiring against him.
Şık is among four journalists who were jailed pending trial in the OdaTV case, brought to trial as part of a probe into Ergenekon, a clandestine criminal network accused of plotting to overthrow the government. Thirteen suspects are facing charges of involvement in the media wing of Ergenekon. Şık and three other journalists implicated in the case were released after the 11th hearing of the OdaTV trial at the İstanbul 16th High Criminal Court on March 12.
An indictment prepared by an Ankara public prosecutor seeks up to 12 years in prison for Şık on charges of threatening and insulting public officials. The names of 39 judges and prosecutors working on investigations of Ergenekon and the OdaTV news website are listed as victims in the indictment. The prosecutor has sent the indictment to the Silivri 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance. If the indictment is accepted by the court, Şık will stand trial.
An angry Şık strongly criticized the trial as he was leaving Silivri Prison in March and said the judges, prosecutors and police officers involved in his case will also be jailed.
“There are five people jailed in my case alone. Some 100 journalists are still in prison. The issue of freedom of expression is not just the problem of journalists. There are some 600 students [in prison]. We will go ahead with our struggle. The judges, prosecutors and police officers who plotted and implemented this conspiracy will be put in prison. Those community-linked, gang-linked people will be here. Justice will be served when they enter here,” he told reporters.
In using the word “community,” Şık was referring to members of the faith-based Hizmet movement, whom he accuses of being behind the case against him. The Hizmet Movement is a group of volunteers engaged in interfaith and intercultural dialogue inspired by the ideas of Fethullah Gülen, whose teachings promote mutual understanding and tolerance between cultures. The group strongly denies Şık’s accusations.
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