Barred from social media and unable to deliver his defense at the first hearing of the Istanbul corruption trial, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu is now challenging a court order banning the book in which he set out that defense.
İmamoğlu first disclosed the ban on Aug. 28, sharing the book's cover and saying police had raided printing houses and confiscated copies before publication. He made the announcement in a video created by AI.
It is rare for the Turkish state to order a ban on an unpublished book, though there have been precedents, particularly after the 1971 and 1980 coups and in the case of former journalist and TIP MP Ahmet Şık’s 2011 expose of the Gülen Movement.
Lawyers for İmamoğlu have appealed the court order banning his book, 'The Nation Is My Witness,' arguing the ruling was issued without proper justification.
At the request of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the Istanbul 4th Criminal Court of Peace ordered that printed and in-progress copies of the book be seized and its distribution and sale blocked.
Lawyers for the jailed mayor say there’s no evidence to support the court's assessment that the book could upset public order.
Their appeal invokes a June 25, 2014, Constitutional Court ruling on the seizure of an unpublished book by Abdullah Öcalan, which found that seizing the manuscript and rejecting the appeal against it violated the constitutional provisions on freedom of expression and freedom of the press. The petition also cites European Court of Human Rights and Constitutional Court precedent holding that interference with publications containing political opinion is permissible only where there is a call for or incitement to violence.
Jailed since March 2025, İmamoğlu was unable to deliver his defense after an exchange of barbs with the presiding judge over the short time allocated for his defense. The judge insisted on concluding the first hearing session by July 9 and ordered that İmamoğlu's stance be recorded in the minutes as 'he exercised his right to remain silent,' as the accused was removed from the courtroom before completing his testimony.
When hearings resumed on Aug. 17, the dispute over İmamoğlu's defense continued. The judge again treated İmamoğlu's stance as an exercise of the right to remain silent. Noting that the order of defense statements was still being determined, the presiding judge said İmamoğlu's defense would be taken 'at an appropriate place, within a reasonable time.'
Since his imprisonment, numerous court orders have blocked İmamoğlu’s social media accounts only for his team to open new ones.
