Dissident Writer Once Again Faces Trial

Sociolog İsmail Besikci, known for his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue faces trial for his article titled "We Oppressed Instead of Talking" which appeared on Esmer magazine.

Esmer owner Ferzende Kaya and editor-in-chief Mehmet Ali İzmir will also stand trial with Besikci on accounts of "propulsion to violence and hatred", as quoted on article 216 of the Turkish Penal Code.

Prosecution pressed charges following the investigation brought by General Staff's "secret" criminal complaint.

During the investigation, Prof. Mehmet Emin Artuk of Marmara University Law School denoted that Besikci's statements may constitute the alleged crime.

Prosecutor's indictment rests on this interpretation and Besikci and others' trial begins today with 4 and-a-half years of imprisonment.

Another article that appeared on the magazine, which harshly criticized Gen. Yasar Buyukanıt didn't result in a trial following Prof. Arduk's counterview.

İsmail Besikci had faced numerous trials concerning his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue in Turkey.

He had been in prison for years before a conditional discharge in 1999.(EO/EU)