The award-winning Turkish-Kurdish author Yavuz Ekinci, whom PEN Berlin welcomed last year with the kind support of the Literary Colloquium Berlin and the Hamburg Foundation for Politically Persecuted Persons, will have to stand trial once again on 18 September in Istanbul. His novel »Traumsplitter« was confiscated and banned in March 2023, nine years after its publication. According to the new charges, the book contains ‘terrorist propaganda’. Ekinci faces a seven-year jail term.
The writer, whose novels are published in German by Antje Kunstmann, was already given a suspended sentence of one and a half years in 2022 for eight tweets from 2013-14. This sentence has not yet come into force.
The Erdogan regime has used criminal proceedings and prison sentences to silence journalists and other critics for many years. With Yavuz Ekinci, it has hit an area that has so far been largely spared: literature. As is often the case when the regime marks out its enemies, there is evidence in Ekinci’s case of collusion between the authorities and pro-government media. In his case, the Islamist daily Yeni Akit has been particularly prominent, launching a smear campaign in 2018 on the occasion of his novel »The Tears of the Prophet«, which continues to this day. Ekinci’s Kurdish background is also a recurring theme.
»Receiving a court summons with the subject line ›Why did you write this book?‹ sets a dangerous precedent and will sooner or later threaten the freedom of all of us«, said Yavuz Ekinci. Sandra Hetzl, board member of PEN Berlin, commented: »This charge against one of Turkey’s best and most famous authors is a new, dramatic attempt to intimidate all those who wish to express themselves freely in Turkey, be they writers or journalists.«
The hearing will take place at the 23rd Criminal Court in Istanbul. A delegation from PEN Türkiye and a board member of PEN Berlin will be present.
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