Filiz Buluttekin, co-mayor of Amed’s central Sur district municipality, was indicted on the grounds of a speech she made in Kurdish at the Local Conference of Women held on 7 January 2018.
The fourth hearing in the case was held at Diyarbakır 11th Heavy Penal Court on Tuesday. The Kurdish politician, who is accused of “spreading terrorist propaganda”, did not attend the hearing while her lawyer Sertaç Buluttekin was present.
The prosecution reiterated the opinion made in the previous hearing seeking a jail sentence for “spreading terrorist propaganda”.
Complying with the prosecution, the court board sentenced Buluttekin to 10 months in prison. While the sentence was suspended for 5 years, the court ruled for deferment of the announcement of the verdict.
Co-mayor of Karayazı jailed and replaced by a trustee
Police forces carried out raids in Karayazı district of Erzurum early Tuesday morning. Seven people were taken into custody in the operation, including Co-mayor Melike Göksu and 2 councilors.
Göksu of the HDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) had been elected co-mayor with 61,83 percent of the vote in the local elections of March 31.
The co-mayor had been arrested on 10 July 2017, while serving as a member of the City Council, for alleged “membership to an illegal organization”. She was released after 5 months of imprisonment. On 22 December 2017, she was sentenced to 7 years and 6 months in prison but the case was later referred to the Court of Appeals.
Last week, the prison sentence was approved and an arrest warrant was issued for the co-mayor who has been taken into custody this morning. Serdar Göksu, Serkan Göksu, Erol Göksu, Emel Turan, Erdal Bayram and Ferit Kaya, who were with Göksu during her detention, were also taken into custody.
While 6 of the detainees were released, Co-mayor Melike Göksu was remanded in custody over an approved prison sentence of 7 years and 6 months. Mesut Tabakcıoğlu was appointed trustee to take over the administration of the municipality.
Arrested HDP Kulp co-mayors replaced by a trustee
HDP Kulp Municipality co-mayors Mehmet Fatih Taş and Fatma Ay and 5 people were arrested after the explosion that killed 7 people and wounded another 10 on 12 September in the village of Ağaçkorur in Kulp (province of Amed).
District Governor Mustafa Gözlet was appointed trustee by the government to replace the co-mayors.