Thirty-eight people who took part in a 2014 demonstration in Izmir in protest of the government in the aftermath of the graft probes publicly known as “17-25 December,” and a journalist who was at the scene to cover the demonstration, will be standing trial on the charge of “violating the Law on Demonstrations and Public Marches” almost four years after the demonstration.
Nineteen demonstrators had been detained and an investigation had been launched into the participants at the time. The investigation also covered journalist Eda Aktaş, who was a reporter for Evrensel at the time.
The investigation resulted in an indictment, which also accuses the demonstrators of “destroying public and private property, and resisting and obstructing law enforcement officers.”
The first hearing of the case is scheduled for 14 January 2019 at the 22nd Criminal Court of First Instance.