Statement from Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on tea during the hearings in Silivri
The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office made a statement regarding the news that the Mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and the detained defendants were not allowed to drink tea in the courtroom in Silivri.
Quick Look
- Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office made a written statement regarding the news that the defendants of the IBB case could not drink tea in the courtroom in Silivri.
- In the statement, it was stated that there was no legal basis and rations were given.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The judicial processes and prison conditions of Ekrem İmamoğlu and other defendants who are detained within the scope of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality case are discussed in public.
Following our news that Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality President and presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu and the detained defendants in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality case were not allowed to drink tea in the custody section of the courtroom in Silivri, Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office issued a written statement.
In the statement, referring to Article 4/3 of the "Regulation on Subsistence for Convicts, Detainees and Penitentiary Institutions Personnel", it was reminded that prisoners who attended the hearings were given food rations for their meals. In the statement, it was stated that no detainees were served tea or coffee before and during the hearing, due to the lack of legal basis, and that there were no restrictions on detainees and convicts drinking tea in the rooms they stayed in penal institutions.
THERE WAS NO ANSWER TO THE FAMILIES' REQUEST
It was revealed that those detained in the İmamoğlu and İBB case were not allowed to drink tea in the custody section of the new hall where the hearings were held in Silivri. While it was learned that the reason for the practice was "security", it was stated that the families who reacted to the detainees not being able to drink tea during the IMM hearings, which could last up to 15 hours a day, offered to cover all the expenses of the tea to be served to their relatives, but the security units responsible for the prison rejected this offer.
While the statement of the prosecutor's office confirmed our news that tea was not given to the detainees, there was no explanation yet as to why the families' requests to cover the tea expenses were rejected.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Restrictions on Ekrem İmamoğlu and other detainees, who are on trial within the scope of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality case, remain on the public agenda. Following the restriction of defense time during the hearings, the banning of İmamoğlu's book "The Nation is My Witness", which is still in the process of being published, and the ban on watching Super League matches in the wards, it was reported that drinking tea in the custody section of the new hall in Silivri was not allowed for "security" reasons. During the hearings, which lasted up to 15 hours a day, it was revealed that the families' requests to cover their tea expenses were rejected by the prison security units. In the judicial process that has been going on since March 2025, access to İmamoğlu's X and YouTube accounts was blocked, the use of his posters and banners was banned, and various restrictions were imposed on prison visits.
Open Questions
- Why was the families' offer to cover tea expenses rejected?
