What happened
Güldünya Tören, originally from Bitlis Province, was living in Istanbul after giving birth to a son. Contemporary reporting and later United Nations documentation described threats from relatives who believed that her pregnancy had brought dishonor on the family.
On February 25, 2004, Güldünya was shot and wounded in Istanbul. She survived and was hospitalized. Reports at the time said she had expressed fear that relatives would try again and had sought protection.
While she remained in hospital, a second attack took place. United Nations documentation records that Güldünya was declared dead on February 27, 2004. Her death became a major national reference point in debate over violence against women and the failure to protect people facing family-based threats.
Investigation and prosecution
Prosecutors brought charges against Güldünya's brothers İrfan and Ferit Tören. The first criminal judgment convicted both men, but the case did not end there. Turkey's Court of Cassation later overturned the original sentencing structure, holding that the first shooting and the later fatal hospital attack required separate punishment.
The retrial therefore addressed both the attempted killing and the completed murder. A third relative who had been prosecuted was acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence; this page does not attribute criminal responsibility to him.
Retrial and final sentences
In November 2007, Bakırköy 5th High Criminal Court convicted the brothers again. İrfan Tören received life imprisonment for the murder together with an additional prison term connected to the attempted killing. Ferit Tören, who had been a minor at the time of the crime, received a total prison term of 23 years and four months.
The defendants appealed. In June 2009, the 1st Criminal Chamber of Turkey's Court of Cassation upheld the local court's judgment, leaving İrfan Tören's life sentence and Ferit Tören's 23-year, four-month sentence in force.
Why the legal history matters
The initial convictions are not the correct endpoint of this case. The first appellate review required a retrial because two separate attacks had occurred. Only the later judgment, followed by the 2009 Court of Cassation ruling, represents the final adjudicated outcome.
Ferit Tören later died while imprisoned in 2012. That subsequent event did not alter the final murder conviction.
Timeline
February 25, 2004: Güldünya Tören is shot and wounded in Istanbul and survives the first attack.
February 27, 2004: she is declared dead after a second attack while hospitalized.
2005: the first criminal judgment convicts İrfan and Ferit Tören.
November 2006: the Court of Cassation overturns the sentencing structure and orders the two attacks treated separately.
November 2007: the retrial results in life imprisonment for İrfan and a total of 23 years and four months for Ferit.
June 2009: the Court of Cassation upholds the final sentences.
Current status
The murder of Güldünya Tören is solved / adjudicated. The final convictions against İrfan and Ferit Tören were upheld by the Court of Cassation in 2009. The case remains historically important because Güldünya had survived an earlier attempt and expressed fear for her safety before the fatal hospital attack.
Sources
- United Nations Commission on Human Rights — report documenting Güldünya Tören's death and protection concerns, 2005
- Bianet — first convictions in the Güldünya Tören case, 2005
- Yeni Şafak — Court of Cassation overturns the earlier judgment, November 2006
- Habertürk / Anadolu Agency — Court of Cassation upholds final sentences, June 11, 2009
- Cumhuriyet — later summary of the retrial and final sentences, November 2011