Turkish businessmen have been sentenced to life imprisonment for being involved in a large-scale anti-government demonstration in Turkey, and there have been voices of opposition from home and abroad.
On the 25th, a Turkish court sentenced Turkish businessman Ottoman Kawara to life imprisonment for attempting to overthrow the nation in support of a large-scale anti-government demonstration that took place nine years ago.
Mr. Kawara has been detained for four and a half years since 2017, and there have been calls from Turkey and other countries in Europe and the United States for his release.
After the ruling, protests were held in various parts of Turkey, and on the 26th in the center of Istanbul, the largest city, so many people gathered to fill the streets and voiced protests.
A 46-year-old lawyer who participated in the demonstration said, "It is a decision that violates domestic law and distorts the image of Turkey. To solve the problem, politicians' intervention in the judiciary must be removed." ..
In response to the ruling, the European Council, an international organization that monitors human rights violations in Europe, issued a statement accusing "the sentence of life imprisonment is shocking and deeply disappointing."
Meanwhile, Turkey's law minister, Bozder, expressed discomfort on the 26th, saying to local reporters, "Turkey is a law-abiding country, and no country has the right to speak to Turkey's judiciary." It is expected that the criticisms of Western countries, which have raised the issue of the Erdogan administration's powerful constitution as a result of this ruling, will increase further.