US embassy cable - 04ANKARA2186

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 002186 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/15/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, TU 
SUBJECT: CASE AGAINST ATTACKERS OF CHRISTIAN CONVERT DELAYED 
 
 
Classified by Polcouns John Kunstadter; reasons 1.4 b and d. 
 
 
1. (C) Summary: A court in northwestern Turkey postponed for 
15 months the trial of three suspects accused of severely 
beating a Christian convert from Islam for performing 
missionary work, causing him to suffer a coma.  The delay was 
approved ostensibly in order to evaluate the extent of the 
victim's injuries.  Embassy raised concerns about the case 
with contacts in the Justice and Foreign ministries, who said 
they would discuss the case with the court prosecutor and 
other GOT officials.  A Protestant pastor told us the attack 
was the first of its kind in recent memory in Turkey, though 
intolerance of converts is widespread.  GOT contacts 
acknowledged many Turks fear Christianity and are intolerant 
of converts.  End Summary. 
 
 
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Court Orders 15-Month Delay 
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2. (U) A criminal court in Orhangazi, Bursa Province, ruled 
in March to postpone for 15 months the trial of three 
suspects accused of severely beating a Christian convert. 
The court ruled the delay necessary in order to determine 
whether the victim, Yakup Cindilli, will be able to fully 
recover from his injuries.  The local chairman of the 
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and two other MHP members 
allegedly attacked Cindilli in October 2003 after accusing 
him of conducting "missionary propaganda."  Cindilli was in a 
coma for 40 days and continues to suffer mood swings and 
memory lapses.  The next hearing is scheduled for June 18, 
2005. 
 
 
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"Ultra-Nationalists" Attack Christian Converts 
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3. (C) Ihsan Ozbek, an Ankara pastor and chairman of the 
Alliance of Turkish Protestant Churches, told us April 9 that 
the "ultra-nationalist" assailants entered an Orhangazi 
coffeehouse October 19 and ordered both Cindilli and fellow 
Christian convert Tufan Orhan to come out.  After punching 
Cindilli and Orhan in the street, they took them to a nearby 
MHP building.  Inside, they beat the victims and demanded 
that they renounce Christ and "return to Islam."  Orhan 
complied, and escaped serious injury.  But Cindilli had lost 
control of his senses, was unable to respond, and was 
therefore beaten much more severely.  Ozbek noted that Orhan 
remembers the attack clearly, and reported it to fellow 
church members, but is not participating in the trial for 
fear of retribution.  However, a coffeehouse employee who 
witnessed the beginning of the attack has testified in court. 
 
 
 
 
4. (U) The Alliance, which includes the Bursa church where 
Cindilli and Orhan worship, asked to be a party to the trial, 
on the grounds that the victims were assaulted for belonging 
to a Protestant church.  But the court rejected the request, 
maintaining that the attack was a "personal dispute."  Ozbek 
said the Alliance contacted the Cindilli family and offered 
to pay for an attorney, but family members are too scared to 
cooperate with the church.  In the absence of a private 
attorney, the case against the suspects is completely in the 
hands of the court prosecutor, who would otherwise have a 
more limited role.  Ozbek said he is hopeful Cindilli will 
hire an attorney through the Alliance once his mental and 
physical condition improves. 
 
 
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Embassy Raises with MOJ, MFA 
---------------------------- 
 
 
5. (U) We raised concerns about the attack and the trial 
delay with contacts in the Justice and Foreign Affairs 
ministries.  There is a 7.5-year statute of limitations on 
the assault charges, meaning that the case will be closed 
without a verdict if a final decision, including appeal, is 
not reached before the deadline.  Procedural delays are often 
used in Turkey as a means to run out the clock and avoid a 
conviction.  The court set the next hearing date on a 
Saturday, when courts are not in session, possibly in order 
to further delay the process.  Abdulkadir Kaya, Justice 
Ministry Director General for International Relations, 
asserted to us the court's postponement decision was based on 
a medical examination determining that doctors will need 15 
months to determine whether Cindilli will be able to fully 
recover from his injuries.  If his injuries are determined to 
be temporary, the defendants would face 2-5 year prison 
sentences if convicted; if permanent, they would face 5-10 
years.  Kaya said Cindilli could ask for a second medical 
exam to challenge the postponement.  We noted Cindilli's 
mental condition and the fact that he had not hired an 
attorney.  Kaya said he will contact the prosecutor and 
discuss options for shortening the postponement, but he 
cautioned that he could not force the prosecutor to agree. 
 
 
6. (U) Ali Savut, director of the MFA Human Rights 
Department, acknowledged to us he was "shocked" to learn of 
the 15-month delay.  However, he urged the USG to focus on 
the overall human rights reform process in Turkey, rather 
than on specific cases, and noted that the GOT cannot 
interfere in the judicial process.  We replied that we are 
closely following and encouraging the GOT's legislative 
reforms.  At the same time, we are concerned by court 
decisions that appear to contradict the spirit of the 
reforms.  If the court in this case fails to properly try the 
defendants, it will give the appearance of condoning 
anti-Christian violence.  GOT officials often raise concerns 
about religious discrimination against Turks abroad.  Savut 
said he will report USG concerns to other ministries. 
 
 
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GOT Contacts Acknowledge Religious Intolerance 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
 
7. (C) Ozbek said Turkey's Protestant community, about 3,000 
strong, was shocked by the attack.  Cindilli and Orhan had 
been passing out copies of the New Testament, though not at 
the time of the attack.  Such missionary work, though legal 
in Turkey, often angers Turks, leading them to punch and 
insult church members.  But Ozbek said he knows of no 
previous case in recent memory of such a vicious, 
premeditated attack against Protestants for missionary 
activities.  Still, the roots of the anger are clear.  Ozbek, 
a convert himself, said Christian converts provoke a deep 
anger in some Turkish Muslims, who take it as a personal 
insult when a fellow Muslim "rejects" Islam.  Kaya and Savut 
both acknowledged the problem.  Kaya said religious education 
in Turkey needs to be improved, to promote true religious 
tolerance.  Many Turks, even if they are not observant 
Muslims, will tolerate non-Muslim foreigners but not 
converts.  "If you don't go to Friday (Muslim) prayer, no 
problem," he said.  "But if you say 'I'm a Christian,' that 
is a problem."  Savut said many Turks view Christianity as a 
threat, though Turkey is officially 99 percent Muslim, and 
nationalists often stoke this fear for political ends. 
 
 
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Comment 
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8. (C) Though this attack was an isolated and apparently 
unusual incident, it reflects a much broader problem.  Many 
Turks regard people outside the accepted Sunni Muslim mold 
with fear and contempt.  If they are foreigners, or members 
of Turkey's long-standing Christian, Jewish or heterodox 
Muslim (Alevi) communities, they will be tolerated, though 
not accepted.  But a Turk who converts from Islam is 
perceived as having gone beyond the limits of religious 
tolerance.  While our contacts acknowledge the problem, most 
Turks do not.  Turkish education asserts that the Ottoman 
Empire demonstrated high tolerance for religious minorities, 
and Turks tend to believe Turkey maintains an impeccable 
record in this regard. 
 
 
 
 
EDELMAN