Lawyer Ebru Timtik lost her life in hospital, on the 238th day of hunger strike on Thursday, demanding a fair trial.
According to reports, Turkish lawyer demanding a fair trial after being facing multiple charges over alleged links to an outlawed Marxist organisation has died in an Istanbul hospital on the 238th day of her hunger strike.
She was sentenced to 13.5 years in prison last March for “terrorism-related” offence in a highly-politicised and “flawed trial which heard testimony from an unreliable police informer and anonymous witnesses.”
Her heart stopped on Thursday night with friends saying she resisted till the end, as attempts to resuscitate her failed.
‘Ebru Timtik weighed just 30 Kilogrammes (65 pounds) at the time of her death, which has sparked condemnation from opposition parties in Turkey’ her friends said.
Expressing their reactions on social media, several politicians, legists, artists and journalists have criticized the silence displayed in the face of Timtik’s demands and underlined the importance of the right to a fair trial.
International lawyers group said that Timtik, sentenced to more than 13 years in prison, and colleague Aytac Unsal began fasting in April “to strengthen their demand for fair trials and the administration of justice in Turkey.”
An appeal to the March 2019 verdict was rejected in October and a further appeal before Turkey’s Supreme Court is pending, the statement read.
Human Rights Association co-chair Erin Keskin said, “with Ms Timtik’s death, the epitome of injustice has been reached.”
The Human Rights Association (İHD) İstanbul Branch has released a written statement after arrested lawyer Ebru Timtik lost her life.”The ones who rule the country are responsible for the death of lawyer Ebru Timtik,” the statement read.
It further added, “We condemn this despotic mentality that leaves people no choice but to risk their lives to access fundamental rights.”