Turkey: Index award winner faces jail

July 3rd, 2012

The conviction of Ferhat Tunç signals the marginalisation of dissident Turkish voices, says Kaya Genç
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Turkey: Ferhat Tunç given prison sentence

January 27th, 2011

Index award winner, Ferhat Tunç has been sentenced to 25 days in prison for a speech he made during a 2006 concert. Tunç was charged under article 7/2 of Turkey’s Anti-Terror Law and article 220/6  of its Turkish Criminal Law, namely “spreading propaganda” for a terrorist organistion. Here Turkish novelist Kaya Genç talks to Kurdish musicians —including Tunç — about making their voices heard despite continuing discrimination and prejudice

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Turkey: Index award-winner Ferhat Tunç acquitted

November 4th, 2010

Kurdish musician Ferhat Tunç, who was facing 15 years in prison for a speech he made at a festival, was acquitted this morning from Diyarbakir Criminal Court in Turkey. The decision follows a petition signed by more than 1,000 supporters and campaigning from PEN. Tunç, who won the 2010 Index on Censorship/Freemuse Freedom of Expression Award for his “brave stand against censorship“, had been charged with spreading propaganda for PKK (Kurdish Workers’ Party) after speaking at the Siirt cultural festival in April.

Turkey: Petition to free Turkish singer

October 14th, 2010

More than 1000 people have signed petition calling on authorities to drop trial against singer and Ferhat Tunç, who is facing a prison sentence of up to 15 years after a speech he made at a cultural festival of Siirt. The case against the defendant is being heard at the Diyarbakir 4^th High Criminal Court. During a 1 October hearing, his joint lawyers claimed that Tunç’s speech, who was this year’s winner of the Index on Censorship/Freemuse award for his propagation of freedom of speech and human rights, should be assessed within the boundaries of freedom of expression. The court postponed the case to 4 November in order to gather missing documents.