A prosecutor sought the punishment of Fındıklı Mayor Ercüment Çervatoğlu in a case over opposition to mining activities in the Rize district. The case was filed following a complaint by people collecting samples in the area on behalf of TÜPRAG Metal Madencilik, the Türkiye subsidiary of Canada-based Eldorado Gold Corporation. At the hearing in Rize’s Pazar district, the prosecutor sought Çervatoğlu’s acquittal on a charge of deprivation of liberty. However, the prosecutor requested his punishment over an allegation that the vehicle of people who were said to have collected rock samples without permission from privately owned land and were stopped by villagers had been seized. Çervatoğlu rejected the charges, saying that protecting the district’s water, soil and living spaces was his public responsibility as mayor. He argued that his prosecution targeted the people of Fındıklı’s struggle to protect nature. After lawyers requested time to prepare their defense, the court adjourned the hearing until 10:00 on 14 December 2026.
26 October 2026
bianet