Amnesty International has called on Turkish authorities to stop abusing the criminal justice system to silence dissent, following court rulings that acquitted 99 people prosecuted for protesting the arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.
The human right watchdog’s statement came after the İstanbul 62nd Court of First Instance acquitted 87 protesters on November 27 and eight journalists and four lawyers the following day.
“The prosecutions of these protesters, journalists and lawyers should never have been brought and the endemic abuse of the criminal justice system to crack down on dissent in Türkiye must end,” Amnesty International’s statement read.
İmamoğlu, a senior member of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and considered to be the strongest political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was detained on March 19 along with dozens of İstanbul city officials. He was named his party’s presidential candidate in March for the next general election scheduled for 2028.
His detention sparked widespread protests — the largest in Turkey since 2013. During the demonstrations nearly 2,000 people, including teenagers, students, lawyers, journalists, union leaders and human rights defenders, were detained nationwide. İmamoğlu was arrested days later, on March 23, on corruption charges.
İmamoğlu is accused of running what prosecutors call a “criminal organization” within the municipality and committing 142 offenses including bribery, fraud, bid rigging and money laundering. İmamoğlu has denied the accusations and says they are politically motivated.
Those acquitted in the cases were indicted under Turkey’s Law on Meetings and Demonstrations, which critics say is widely used to criminalize peaceful protest.
Amnesty International also stated that its research into the policing of the mass demonstrations documented allegations of torture and other ill-treatment by law enforcement officers.
The statement said the cases reflect a broader pattern of judicial abuse and systematic suppression of dissent in Turkey, raising concerns about the political use of criminal proceedings against government critics.
The deterioration in fundamental rights in Turkey, including freedom of expression, and the Erdoğan government’s use of national security and counterterrorism laws to suppress criticism and dissent have long been criticized by the EU, the UN and international human rights organizations.
