Quotes costs Turkish journalist prison sentence
Irfan Atkan has been sentenced to 15 months in prison under Turkey’s draconian anti-terror laws
(more…)
Turkey: Dink murder journalist cleared
Turkish journalist, Nedim Şener has been acquitted following his prosecution for alleging police negligence in his book “The Dink Murder and the Intelligence Lies” with respect to the murder of Turkish-Armenian reporter Hrant Dink. Accused of a “violation of secrecy” for publishing confidential information, Şener faced a three year prison sentence if convicted. However, on Friday 4 June, the court exonerated him, ruling that much of the “secret” information was already in the public domain prior to the books publication.
Turkey: Journalists sentenced and fined for ‘propaganda’
Two employees of Turkey’s Express periodical have been convicted of “making propaganda for a terrorist organisation”. Journalist Irfan Aktan was sentenced to 15 months in prison while editorial manager Merve Erol was fined TL 16,000 (€ 8,000). The charges stem from an article published last September entitled “Weather conditions in the Qandil region/No solution without fighting”. The Qandil mountains are home to camps run by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and several high-ranking members of the militant organisation. The journalists’ defence argued the article was written at a time when the discussions about the Kurdish initiative had just started and when PKK members had started to surrender.
Turkish student convicted for Facebook cartoon
A Turkish student has received an 11-month suspended jail sentence after posting a cartoon of the local mayor on Facebook. Erdem Büyük, 22, of the northwestern city of Eskisehir, was arrested, interrogated after loading a cartoon of Yilmaz Bûyükersen onto the site. He has been found guilty of defamation under article 125 of the Turkish criminal code. Büyük told reporters that he shared the cartoon because he “really liked it” but had “no intention of attacking the mayor”. The sentence has been postponed for 5 years, but will be executed if the student repeats the offense. Büyük’s lawyer said today that they intend to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights.