The decision of the first instance court sentencing İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu to 2 years, 7 months and 15 days in prison and banning him from political life for the crime of “insulting public officials” constitutes a major setback for democracy in Turkey.
This sentence is disproportionate and confirms the systemic lack of independence of the judiciary and the undue political pressure on judges and prosecutors in Turkey.
Ahead of Presidential and Parliamentary elections next year, this decision is particularly significant in the context of politicisation of the country’s judiciary system, which undermines the freedom and fairness of the electoral context.
Turkey needs to reverse the continuous backsliding on human rights and rule of law now.