On February 18, scientists and academics around the world initiated a petition calling for the conviction of Dr. Bülent Sik to be overturned. Dr. Sik, a food engineer who until 2016 worked with Turkey’s Ministry of Health while a professor at Akdeniz University, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for releasing findings of a study linking environmental factors and cancer cases. The petition ... Continue Reading>>
Tuna Altinel Acquitted of Charges at Final Hearing in Turkey
Tuna Altinel, Associate Professor of Mathematics at Lyon-1 University of France, has been acquitted of “membership in a terrorist organization” at his final hearing. Altinel had been found not guilty in a previous hearing, but when he went to inquire about the status of his passport he was re-arrested due to charges imposed by the prosecutor. No travel ban has been issued to Altinel, but his ... Continue Reading>>
Former Professor of Fatih University Sentenced to 9 Years In Prison – Still in Jail
Ahmet Metin Sekizkardes, a former journalist and professor of Fatih University was arrested in July 2016 on charges of being a member of an armed terrorist organization. He was convicted and sentenced to nine years in prison and is still confined. The charges appear to be unsubstantiated. Fatih was one of the top private universities in Turkey and closed by the government after the failed coup ... Continue Reading>>
Former Rector of Turgut Ozal University Still In Jail After Three Years
Abdulkadir Sengun was the Rector and Professor of Turgut Ozal University. He was arrested following the July 16 attempted coup and charged with being a member of an armed terrorist organization. He was sentenced to more than eight years in prison. Turgut Ozal University was one of the schools that the current Turkish administration closed. His relationship to the school seems to be the basis for ... Continue Reading>>
Serkan Golge and Ismail Kul Released But Still Not Home
Two American academics that were released from prison in Turkey, after being imprisoned for charges they did not commit, are still not allowed to depart Turkey to return home. Serkan Golge, a former NASA scientist, and Ismail Kul, a professor at Widener College in Pennsylvania, have been released from prison but Turkish officials continue to withhold their passports and require them to report to ... Continue Reading>>
Founder of Turkey and Middle East Forum Foundation Acquitted of Charge of “Propagandizing for A Terrorist Oganization” in Turkish Court
Fikret Baskaya had been detained and charged with “propagandizing for a terrorist organization” due to an article he wrote three years ago. In his third hearing before the Ankara 21st Heavy Penal Court on November 22nd he was acquitted and released. Prior to the trial CCS wrote to the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan requesting a review of Dr. Baskaya’s case and his immediate release. ... Continue Reading>>
Mathematician, Tuna Altinel, Denied Return of Passport, Despite Court Ruling Allowing Him to Leave Country
Tuna Altinel, a mathematics professor at Frances Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University was arrested in May 2019 and released in July while awaiting a second hearing in November. When released he was not denied travel but his passport was not returned. As there is no legal restriction on his travel CCS is requesting that his passport be returned to him. November 19, ... Continue Reading>>
Ayse Erzan, Retired Physics Professor at Istanbul Technical University and Xiaoxing Xi, a Chinese-born American Physicist and Former Chair of the Physics Department at Temple University Received the American Physical Society’s 2020 Andrei Sakharov Prize
Ayse Erzan was a signer of the Peace Petition in Turkey and wrongfully indicted. She has been involved in the peace and women’s movements. Upon notice of having received the reward Dr. Erzan commented that she felt the award was not really for her, but more for the struggles of the Academics for Peace. Dr. Erzan has been actively involved in assisting academics who have been, like herself, ... Continue Reading>>
17 Scholars, from Meliksah University in Turkey, Sentenced To Maximum of 11 Years in Prison
In the aftermath of the attempted coup in 2016, many universities in Turkey were closed leaving staff with no jobs and students with no available schooling. Many staff members of these schools were charged for “supporting a terrorist organization." Meliksah University was one of those involved. On August 15, 2016 arrest warrants were issued for 100 members of their staff. Sixty-three were detained ... Continue Reading>>
Former Rector of Canik Basari University Awaiting Trial in Turkey
Yunus Bekdemir was the former founder of Canik Başarı (Success or Achievement) University and arrested for “membership of an armed terrorist organization” and “opposition to the law on the prevention of financing of terrorism” on September 23, 2016. His university was closed as one of the 15 universities that were closed after the failed coup. At the Samsun 3rd Peace Court of Criminal Jurisdiction ... Continue Reading>>