The Turkish writer Asli Erdogan was once again acquitted on Thursday of the charge of "propaganda for a terrorist organization".

Trial observers had previously feared that the hearing would end with an arrest warrant for Erdogan, who lives in exile in Berlin.

However, there still seem to be judges who do not want to bow to pressure from the Turkish President.

Karen Krueger

Editor in the Feuilleton.

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The verdict is the latest development in a Kafkaesque trial that began after the failed coup attempt in the summer of 2016.

In the course of the wave of arrests of alleged government opponents, the pro-Kurdish newspaper “Özgür Gündem” also came under the scrutiny of the Turkish judiciary.

Journalists, human rights activists and civil society representatives who worked with her were arrested.

Also Asli Erdogan, who had written columns for the newspaper on the side.

These are time-critical texts in which Erdogan never took a stand for the armed struggle of Kurdish separatists.

The Turkish public prosecutor's office nevertheless saw them as "propaganda for a terrorist organization" and also accused the writer of "membership in a terrorist organization".

Erdogan was behind bars for more than four months.

She was able to leave Turkey in September 2017, and in February 2020 an Istanbul jury acquitted her of the allegations.

Four months later, an appeals court ruled that the case should be reopened.

The justification was absurd: Erdogan's columns had also appeared on the website of "Özgür Gündem".

However, the acquittal took place without considering the digital versions.

At the first hearing in December, the judge adjourned the hearing, demanding that the URLs of the articles be submitted to the court.

However, cybercrime investigators were unable to comply.

"Özgür Gündem" was closed by decree in 2016 and the newspaper's website was shut down.

Without the URLs, the court did not see the criminal offense as fulfilled and ruled with an acquittal.

55-year-old Erdogan told this newspaper that she was very happy with the verdict.

“Unfortunately, I no longer trust the Turkish judiciary.

It could well be that she changes her mind again.”