The Kızıltepe JİTEM Case, which was opened in the Kızıltepe district of Mardin between 1992 and 1996, after 22 civilians were killed under police custody, their bodies were dissappeared, was closed on September 9, 2019. Ankara 5th High Criminal Court, which dismissed the case on the grounds that the case was timed out and there were no such organization as Jitem, and acquitted the 9 defendents. It was later revealed that the attorney fees of the 5 village guards were paid by the Mardin Governorate.

 

THE FEE WAS PAID WITH THE DECISION OF THE PRESIDENCY  

 

The payment made by the governorship was revealed with a request written by the Ankara Bar Association to the Ankara 5th High Criminal Court on 29 June. With the request of the Governorship to notify them of the amount to be paid, the Ankara Bar Association wrote a letter to the Ankara 5th High Criminal Court, asking the names of the attorneys. The reason for the payment of the attorney fees of the village guards by the governorship was cited by the "Regulation on Security Guards", which entered into force with the Presidential Decree No. 182 published on October 11, 2018.

 

One of the lawyers of the case, Erdal Kuzu drew attention to the fact that the relevent units of the state paid for the attorney fees of the state officials. Kuzu said: "This indicates that the state claimed the action of  those who committed these murders and protected them. Even though the case was dismissed, we see that by killing these villagers, the state officials were carrying out their duties given by the state. And we see the state excepted this by paying the attorney fees. If the public officials did not faced a trial due to their duties given by the state in this trial, why are the attorney fees paid by the relevant units of the state?"