Not quite seven years ago two Turkish Christians and one German Christian were taken from their workplace in eastern Turkey, tortured and killed. The perpetrators were found, prosecuted, and sentenced to four successive life sentences. A few days ago they were released from prison on a legal technicality that some people think was possibly politically-motivated. Turkish Christians as well as many Turkish Muslims are outraged over their release. The following message from the Association of Protestant Turkish Churches can be posted or forwarded as desired. This release has created great sorrow and the impression that belief in justice has been destroyed. 18 April 2007 has gone down into history as a very difficult day for Protestant Christians [Muslim Background churches and their members] living in Turkey. That day, Necati Aydın and Uğur Yüksel, and a German citizen, Tilman Geske, who all worked at the Zirve publishing house, were subjected to brutal torture, and, in the end, were savagely murdered by five youths who cut their throats. A legal change, affecting the release of the suspects, who have spent more than five years in detention, has become the reason for this horrific miscarriage of justice. The five murder suspects, who were sentenced to seven years imprisonment in the wake of the Zirve Publishing House massacre on 18 April 2007, were set free last night as a result of this change. In the prosecutors written opinion given at the last hearing, it was requested that the murder suspects be sentenced to four consecutive life sentences. Throughout the hearings, the murder suspects have repeatedly threatened the families of the deceased, activists of civil society associations, and members of the press and lawyers. Under such conditions, those being threatened began to experience great personal concern. This release has created great sorrow among Christians, and the impression that belief in justice has been destroyed. In this case, whose conclusion not only the Turkish public but the entire world has awaited with great patience for seven years, the self-sacrificing labors of lawyers and civil society associations since the beginning of the hearings to obtain satisfaction of justice have, in an instant, been reduced to zero. With these releases, the case has suffered a fearful blow. Not only Christians, but all Turkish citizens who have a conscience, were expecting the case to end with justice. At this time, the conscience of all Turkey has been wounded. The murder suspects are now in society, hands and arms free. Who will bear the moral responsibility for this horrific decision? Even more important, who will pay the heavy price of any (very probable!) new activities by these massacre suspects? As Turkish Christians, we opposed this release decision with great pain. A delay of justice for seven years possibly can be endured, but what conscience can endure the utter destruction of justice? The personal safety of ourselves and our families as Christian citizens is under great threat, and we follow these developments in deep horror. We call the government of the Turkish Republic, and all organs of justice, to acr without delay against these threats and dangers. We look for intervention in the shortest possible time against this insensitive and unjust decision. During these worrisome days that we are living in our country, our cry is that justice might find its place. May our untiring struggle for justice be a comfort to all who care about justice and civil society. The Association of Protestant Turkish World Council of Churches
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 10:38:33 +0000
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