Reduce Prison Term for Cemal Metin Avcı by the Turkish Court Due to “Unjust Provocation”
Pinar Gültekin, a university student, was reportedly murdered by her ex-boyfriend Cemal Metin Avci in Turkey. She was missing on July 16th, 2020, and after several days, her body was found in a frost on July 21st, 2020. Her ex-boyfriend Cemal Metin Avcı had confessed that he had strangled her to death before burning her body and dumping it in a forest. Avcı, denied committing the murder at first, but confessed to the crime after watching the video footage and said that he initially beat Gültekin because she didn’t want to get together again and killed her when she passed out.
After two years the court decided to reduce the aggravated life sentence for Avcı due to “unjust provocation”[1]. On Jun 20th, 2022, a Muğla court reduced an aggravated life sentence jail term to 23 years in prison for Cemal Metin Avcı.
www.duvarenglish.com reports that: criticizing the defenses and accusations made for the reduction, the chairwoman of the Turkish Federation of Women’s Associations (TKDF), Canan Güllü said: “Women are killed in this country. The judges who made these decisions need to make up their minds now. This woman was murdered. This woman was killed while she was alive, by being burned, strangled, beaten. It’s enough.”
The situation and status of women has deteriorated tremendously. The Stop honor Killings Campaign, demand justice for all women who have been killed or have been subject of bullying and violence. We, women’s rights activists, will stand up against this injustice wherever we are.
[1] Unjust provocation (Article 29, PENAL CODE OF TURKEY). Any person who commits an offence in a state of anger or severe distress caused by an unjust act shall be sentenced to a penalty of imprisonment for a term of eighteen to twenty four years where the offence committed requires a penalty of aggravated life imprisonment and to a penalty of imprisonment for a term of twelve to eighteen years where the offence committed requires a penalty of life imprisonment. Otherwise the penalty to be imposed shall be reduced by one-quarter to three- quarters.
