Joint Statement: Human rights defender Mehmet Raci Bilici unfairly convicted

Dublin, London, Paris-Geneva, March 23 2020 – Repression of human rightsdefenders continues in Turkey where a board member of the Human RightsAssociation (IHD) was convicted and sentenced to over six years in prison forhis legitimate human rights activities. The Observatory (FIDH-OMCT) alongwith Front Line Defenders and Amnesty International deplore this new conviction which, once again,reflects the harsh context in which human rights defenders operate in Turkey.

On March 12, 2020, Mehmet Raci Bilici,national board member of the Human Rights Association (IHD) and former chair ofthe organisation’s Diyarbakır branch, was sentenced by Diyarbakır Heavy PenalCourt No.5 to six years and three months imprisonment for "membership to aterrorist organisation" (Article 314/2 of the Turkish Penal Code). TheCourt imposed an international travel ban on Mehmet Raci Bilici, who is notdetained pending his appeal. This conviction is based on his legitimate humanrights work between 2011 and 2014 on behalf of IHD as a board member and formerchair of IHD’s Diyarbakır branch. At the time of writing, the Court’s reasoned judgment had not yet been issued. The verdict is subject to appeal – ifit is upheld, Mehmet Raci Bilici would not be able to practice as a lawyer inaccordance with the Attorneyship Act of Turkey.

In the indictment, the Prosecutor hadrequested Mehmet Raci Bilici’s conviction based on wiretaps and audiosurveillance of activities that he had participated in and some of his socialmedia posts in 2015 and 2016. The activities subjected to surveillance were hismonitoring of human rights violations, participation in meetings of humanrights organisations and of the Democratic Society Congress, an umbrellaorganisation focusing on Kurdish rights and politics. The social media postsincluded in the indictment do not represent evidence of criminal acts, letalone any connection to terrorism.

Mehmet Raci Bilici was previously detained on15 March 2017 and released on bail with judicial controls – a travel ban andreporting to a police station once a week - on 21 March 2017 within the scopeof the same case[1].The judicial controls were eventually lifted in spring 2018.

The Observatory for the Protection of HumanRights Defenders, Amnesty International and Front Line Defenders are deeplyconcerned that Mehmet Raci Bilici has been convicted of ‘membership of aterrorist organisation’ on the basis of his activities as a human rightsdefender. This unjust verdict amounts to judicial harassment; it is an attemptto punish and silence Mehmet Raci Bilici in order to stop him and others fromcarrying out legitimate human rights activities.

We call on the Turkish authorities toimmediately and unconditionally stop any harassment, including throughunwarranted prosecution, of Mehmet Raci Bilici and all human rights defendersin Turkey. We hope that Mehmet Raci Bilici’s unfair conviction will be quashedby the appeals court, and that he will be free to continue his human rightswork without further harassment. We will continue to monitor Raci Bilici’s casein its appeal stages.

[1] See the Observatory Urgent Appeal TUR 001 / 0317 / OBS 026.1 ofMarch 24, 2017