"İmzaladığım barış bildirisinin, kimi kısımlarında devlete ağır eleştiriler içerse de özü itibariyle barış sürecine geri dönülmesini talep eden bir metin olduğunu düşünüyorum. Bu bitmek bilmeyen savaşta başka kimsenin ölmesini istemiyorum."

In a petition made public in January 2016, 2212 academics and researchers from Turkey, supported by several hundred international academics—called on the Turkish government to abide by the domestic and international law and to return to the peace process that had been interrupted in July 2015. After the petition was made public, the signatories were specifically targeted by President Erdoğan and subsequently attacked, threatened and became subject to administrative and criminal investigations. Some were arrested and kept in prison.

Boğaziçi Üniversitesi'nden dokuz; İstanbul ve Bahçeşehir üniversitelerinden bir akademisyenin davalarının ilk duruşmaları görüldü. Ayrı yapılan yargılamaların birleştirilmesi talepleri farklı mahkemelerde aynı gerekçelerle reddedildi.

Barış İçin Akademisyenlerin “Bu suça ortak olmayacağız” bildirisini imzaladıkları için "Terör örgütü propagandası" ile suçlanan üç akademisyen Çağlayan’daki İstanbul Adliyesi’nde 36. ve 37. Ağır Ceza mahkemelerinde devam etti.

Academics Gülşah Kurt and S.U., who have left Kadir Has University, have had their first hearings. While Kurt could not attend the hearing on the ground that she was abroad on duty, both hearings have been adjourned to October 2018.

Trials of academics, who have been charged with "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" for having signed the declaration entitled "We will not be a party to this crime" prepared by the Academics for Peace, continued in İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse at the 37th Heavy Penal Court.