İYİ Party leader criticizes court ruling in high-profile femicide case

ANKARA

İYİ (Good) Party leader Meral Akşener has criticized the “unjust provocation discount” given in the case of Cemal Metin Avcı, the murderer of university student Pınar Gültekin.

“They encourage women killers, shame on all of them,” Akşener said addressing her party lawmakers on June 22.

“Today, unfortunately, we are in the middle of a deepening state crisis. Today, they are using the law and justice for dirty purposes in Türkiye. Today, they are trying to leave women unprotected in Türkiye,” she stated.

Recalling that the court applied “unfair provocation discount” to a “murderer who brutally” killed Gültekin, she said, “Today in Türkiye, they allow a psychopath to wander our streets after just 14 years [of prison sentence].”

She criticized the judges that have signed and approved this decision, saying it is “shameful for the Turkish judiciary.”

“I hope one day you will realize that these murderers and psychopaths can find not only other people’s children, siblings, and spouses, but also those who signed this decision, and can find your child, sibling, and spouse,” Akşener said.

Gültekin, a 27-year-old student went missing in Türkiye’s southwestern Aegean province of Muğla on July 16, 2020.

Avcı was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment. His sentence was then reduced to 23 years due to “unjust provocation” on June 20, stirring a public debate.

Gültekin had disappeared after leaving her home. Five days later her ex-boyfriend Avcı had confessed that he had strangled her to death before burning her body and dumping it in a forest, after mounting evidence against him.

The report from the Forensic Medicine Institute had revealed that Gültekin was burned alive.

Both the prosecutor’s office and the family of Gültekin said they would appeal the ruling in higher court.