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A famous Turkish Singer and actress Zuhal Olcay has been sentenced to 10 months in prison

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Singer Zuhal Olcay

Singer Zuhal Olcay

A famous Turkish singer and actress has been sentenced to 10 months in prison for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a performance in 2016, the Hurriyet newspaper said on Thursday.

Singer Zuhal Olcay was accused of changing the lyrics of one of her songs by substituting Erdogan’s name into it and making an insulting hand gesture while singing, Hurriyet’s report said.

Video from the performance showed Olcay changing her song’s lyrics to read “Recep Tayyip Erdogan, it’s all empty, it’s all a lie, life will end one day and you’ll say ‘I had a dream’,” the report added.

In her testimony, Olcay rejected the accusations, saying she had used Erdogan’s name because it fit the rhyme scheme and had no “ulterior or insulting motive.” She added that the hand gesture was aimed at an audience member.

Olcay was previously fined 10,620 lira ($2,708) for “insulting a public servant” in 2010, according to the state-run Anadolu news agency.

Insulting the president is a crime punishable by up to four years in prison in Turkey.

Lawyers for Erdogan, who has dominated Turkish politics for more than a decade, have filed more than 1,800 cases against people including cartoonists, a former Miss Turkey winner and school children on accusations of insulting him.

Enes Kanter, a Turkish basketball player in the US NBA team, New York Knicks, is also standing trial in absentia for insulting Erdogan.

Following the 2016 failed coup, Erdogan said he would drop outstanding suits in a one-off gesture, but several new cases have since emerged.

Rights groups and some Western governments have voiced concern that Turkey is sliding toward authoritarianism, criticizing a crackdown, which has so far seen some 150,000 people sacked or suspended from their jobs and more than 50,000 jailed pending trial on suspicion of links to the failed coup.

The government says such measures are necessary to ensure stability and defend Turkey from multiple security threats.

(Source: Reuters)

Turkey: the former football star Hakan Sükür tried for insulting Erdogan

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arton127930-480x270The trial of the former star of Turkish football Hakan Sükür for “insulting” the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a controversial count for which he faces up to four years in prison, opened Thursday in Istanbul, reported news agency Dogan.

The prosecutor of the Istanbul Bakirkoy district claims against the author of the fastest goal in the history of the World Cup in 2002 in South Korea, one to four years in prison for “insulting” Mr. Erdogan in a series of tweets since erased, Dogan said, without specifying the content.

According to the daily Hürriyet, Hakan would Sükür refers to a corruption scandal in 2013 for the Erdogan’s entourage and launched without naming him: “Is this how you become a politician, impudent?” Absent when first hearing, the former player now lives in the US, according to his lawyer Ali Onur güncel quoted by Dogan. The trial was adjourned to give time to the defense to disclose the new address of the player to the court, the agency said.

Since his election to the presidency in August 2014, Erdogan accused by his critics of wanting stifle all dissent, has multiplied the proceedings for “insult” to both artists and journalists as individuals.

After a rich sports career, especially with the club Galatasaray Sükür had entered politics to Erdogan sides and had been elected in 2011 on a list of his Justice and Development Party (AKP), in power since 2002.

But hostile to Erdogan’s decision to launch a war on his former ally became his enemy number 1, the influential preacher Fethullah Gulen who lives in the United States which is deemed to be a follower, he had resigned from the AKP in 2013.

Hakan Sükür had denied it a few months ago have moved to the United States, ensuring that he went to “learn English”.

Aged 44, Hakan Sükür spent most of his career at Galatasaray Istanbul club with which he won 8 times the championship of Turkey and the UEFA Cup in 2000. In the national team he has 112 caps and scored 51 goals between 1992 and 2008 with a 3rd place at the 2002 World Cup.

Former Miss Turkey sentenced to prison for ‘insulting’ Erdoğan

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mstr.thumbFormer Miss Turkey and model Merve Büyüksaraç has been sentenced to prison for “insulting” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during his prime ministry via a post on Instagram. A complaint was filed against Büyüksaraç, who was chosen Miss Turkey in 2006, for “openly insulting a public official for his duty.”

“The boundaries of criticism shouldn’t be interpreted harshly due to the complainant being a state authority. We think that the statements my client shared should be evaluated politically. That’s why we demand the acquittal of my client,” said Ali Deniz Ceylan, Büyüksaraç’s lawyer, on May 31.

The prison sentence of one year, two months and 17 days was postponed. Up to four years and five months in prison was sought for Büyüksaraç.

The lawyers of the parties were the only participants in the hearing, in which Erdoğan’s lawyer claimed that Büyüksaraç’s statements could not be evaluated within the framework of criticism.

“An attack took place against the personal rights of my client. We want the defendant to be punished,” said Erdoğan’s lawyer, Hatice Özay.

Büyüksaraç had said that she was regretful in her defense in the first hearing of the case and asked for her acquittal.

“The poem I’ve shared was shared 960,000 times on social media. I shared the poem via giving quotes from it. The comments near the pictures and the poems, which are in the bill of indictment, don’t belong to me,” Büyüksaraç said.

“I’m regretful that the post I shared was perceived as an insult,” she also said.

Turkey: a famous comedian tried for insulting a governor

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arton124667-260x194The trial for “insulting” a local official of one of the most famous comedians of Turkey opened Monday, the latest example of a long series of similar litigation worries the defenders of freedom of expression. Cem Yilmaz, 42, faces two years in prison for a series of tweets vitriolic against the governor of the province of Yalova (northwest), Selim Cebiroglu after the death of a professor of mathematics.

In March last year, Mr. Cebiroglu had publicly reprimanded the teacher in question, Halil Serka Öz, judging that his clothes and beard gave him the air of “beggar”. The teacher aged 42 had died of a heart attack during a demonstration to denounce the remarks.

Responding on Twitter, Cem Yilmaz said then: “Grind a man by using the power conferred by official responsibilities and inevitably break his heart … How sad that the poor professor died. May you elevate yourself to even greater responsibilities, the Governor! “

“Our client has committed no crime. At no time in his tweets has he said ‘It was you who did it’, “pleaded Monday Rengin Gönenç Yüksel, counsel for Cem Yilmaz was quoted by the pro-government agency Anatolia. He “made critical (…) He did so in his capacity as a comedian, artist,” added the lawyer of the comic away.

The trial for insulting the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, have multiplied since his election as head of state in August 2014, a sign, according to critics, an authoritarian drift. Nearly 2,000 legal proceedings were launched, targeting both artists and journalists as individuals.

“Tolerance leaders for criticism should be higher,” said the lawyer Cem Yilmaz Monday. Cem Yilmaz is one of the most famous comedians in Turkey. Also screenwriter and actor, he has starred with Russell Crowe in “The Promise of a Life” (2014). The trial was adjourned to 13 July, said Anatolia.

Tuesday, April 12, 2016,
Stéphane © armenews.com

Turkey PM is sued for insulting Armenians

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davutoglu suetIstanbul branch of the Human Rights Association (IHD) of Turkey has filed lawsuits against Turkish PM Ahmet Davutoğlu, and Mayor Enver Başaran of Aşkale town of Erzurum Province in Turkey.

The respective IHD Istanbul Branch statement noted that lawsuits have been filed for inciting a part of the society hatred and enmity against another part of the society belonging to another religion and nationality, according to Agos Armenian bilingual weekly of Istanbul.

The statement also noted Davutoğlu’s recent remarks that now the Kurds are collaborating with the Russians, just like the Armenian “gangs” collaborated with them at the turn of the 20th century.

In addition, the statement pointed to Başaran’s offensive remarks against Armenians, during the recent celebrations of “liberating” Aşkale from the Armenians.

Former Turkish int’l footballer Hakan Şükür faces jail for ‘insulting Erdoğan’

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skr.thumbAn Istanbul court has accepted an indictment by a prosecutor who demanded up to four years in jail for former MP and retired international footballer Hakan Şükür for “insulting” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his son, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.  

Deputy Attorney General İdris Kurt in Istanbul’s Bakırköy district said in the indictment that Erdoğan’s lawyer Ahmet Özel and businessman Bekir Savram had lodged complaints about Twitter posts sent by Şükür.

Şükür, who is among the most successful strikers in Turkish football history, was elected as a member of parliament in 2011 from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) ranks.

He resigned from the party in 2013 amid the row between Erdoğan and U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. Şükür, who is known as a supporter of Gülen, ended his parliamentary term us an independent and did not run in either of Turkey’s two general elections last year.

In his defense, Şükür denied that the words in his tweets were directed at either the president or his son.

Following its acceptance of the indictment, the court is now waiting to set a date for the first hearing of the case.

Meanwhile, Anadolu Agency quoted sources from the Ankara Chief Prosecutor’s Office on Feb. 24 as saying an inspection was ongoing for a column penned by world-renown Turkish climber Nasuh Mahruki, who was accused of insulting Erdoğan in a piece titled “Why Shouldn’t Erdoğan be the President?”

Mahruki was the first ever Turkish sportsman to climb the highest mountains on each of the seven continents, known as the Seven Summits. He is the founder of the Search and Rescue Association (AKUT), a very active NGO.

Terrorist State of Turkey a Man sues wife for insulting Erdoğan

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241285A man in İzmir has filed a petition for libel against his wife for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the private İhlas news agency said on Monday.

According to the report, Ali D., a truck driver, recorded his wife’s insults and the swear words she uttered every time she saw Erdoğan speaking on television, when he felt he could no longer support her insults against the president.

Ali’s wife, G.D., reportedly filed for a divorce, while Ali filed a libel suit against his wife for insulting the president. He will use the voice recording as evidence in the case.

Erdoğan, who was elected president in 2014, is a very controversial figure in Turkey as he has freely attacked the opposition while supporting the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), which is in blatant violation of the Constitution.

The Constitution requires a president to be impartial, and Erdoğan was sworn in in Parliament to be impartial in office.

Erdoğan has himself launched many libel suits against journalists, intellectuals who dared to criticize him.

A large number of people, including high school students, activists and even a former Miss Turkey, have been prosecuted for allegedly insulting Erdoğan on social media ever since he was elected.

According to a human rights report released by Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Sezgin Tanrıkulu in December of last year, more than 1,500 people have been sued by Erdoğan on libel charges and 400 more investigations are awaiting approval from the Justice Ministry.

Another Turkish journalist end in Jail for insulting Erdogan

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cmh.thumbAn Istanbul prosecutor has demanded that daily Cumhuriyet columnist Özgür Mumcu be sentenced to four years and eight months in jail for “insulting” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.

Mumcu is being tried over an op-ed published on May 18, 2015 titled “Tyrant and a coward,” in which he blasted Erdoğan’s criticism of Hatice Cömert, the mother of Gezi protest victim Abdullah Cömert.

“It is well-known that tyrants are always fearful. They are so fearful that they would even file a complaint against someone like Abdullah Cömert’s mother,” the piece read.

During the first hearing of the case on Feb. 2 at Istanbul’s Çağlayan Courthouse, Mumcu denied that the article included any kind of insult.

“The piece is a critical text referring to [President Erdoğan] complaint against the mother of Abdullah Cömert after her statements following his death. This article was written following Erdoğan’s complaint, which had been widely reported in the media,” Mumcu said at the trial.

“As a columnist, I used my right to criticize. I’m a lawyer and professor myself. The testimonies and annexes that we have presented to court include samples of European Court of Human Rights [ECHR] rulings and also domestic laws. Therefore, I do not accept the accusations,” he added.

Hatice Özay, the lawyer of Erdoğan, defended the president’s case, saying Mumcu described him in the column as “a tyrant who oppresses his people, treating them without mercy.”

“We think this wording exceeds the limits of criticism. For these reasons, we demand a punishment for the defendant,” she said.

The court decided to postpone the proceedings, offering time to the lawyers of each side to present evidence and assertions.

In his defense, Mumcu also cited the case of Metin Lokumcu, who died of a heart attack in the Black Sea town of Hopa in 2011 during a police intervention against a protest.

He also referred to the case of Berkin Elvan, a 15-year-old boy who died after 269 days in coma having been shot in the head by a police tear gas canister during the Gezi Park protests. Mumcu described Erdoğan’s stated attitude on these incidents as “cold-hearted.”

Erdoğan was widely accused of encouraging his supporters to boo Elvan’s family at a public rally in 2014.

Insulting Erdoğan door of heaven will close & door of hell will open 250 people prosecuted

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Isulting erdoganThe number of the people who have been prosecuted for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has reached 250, a crime for which only one person was tried under the previous four presidents, according to the Sözcü daily.

On Friday, two people were detained by the police in the town of Birecik in southeastern Şanlıurfa province and accused of insulting the president.

During the tenure of the previous four presidents, only one person was brought to trial on the charge of insulting the president, then-President Abdullah Gül, according to the recent Sözcü report.

The defendant was sentenced to eight months in prison in January of this year, but his sentence was deferred. The court ruled that it would drop the charge if the suspect did not commit another crime in the next five years.

While some of the 250 who have been accused of insulting Erdoğan since his election to the presidency in 2014 have been released pending trial, others have remained in jail until their trial. Some have been sentenced to jail time while others paid fines.

Several high school and university students are among those who have been charged, like Emin A. (16), who was released after being held for two days in Konya in December 2014 and whose trial is still pending. Another, H.U.C., was detained in January 2014 in Antalya, released pending trial and ultimately sentenced to eight months in prison in February 2015. The court suspended H.U.C.’s sentence.

The varied profile of those accused also includes lawyers, workers, members of political parties, and several journalists.

Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) sentences anyone convicted of insulting the president to a jail term between one and four years, though judges have some discretion and may also commute the jail sentence to a fine.

Feyzi İşbaşaran, a former Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy was fined TL 10,600 on Nov. 17 for insulting Erdoğan on social media.

 

 

Turkey: Journalist probed for allegedly insulting Turkish president Erdogan

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jnrl.thumbAn investigation has been launched against journalist Hasan Cemal into his article titled “The Sultan in the Palace is culpable for the bloodshed,” Cemal has told daily Hürriyet.

Cemal was summoned to testify on Sept. 17 and the probe was launched purportedly on the charge of “insulting the Turkish president” in his article published on news website T24 on Aug. 12.

“We as journalists have been through hard times thus far with juntas, military coups, state of emergency, martial law. But, what hurts at this point is this was the first lawsuit filed against me since March 12,” Cemal said, recalling Turkey’s second military coup on March 12, 1971, which is known as the “coup by memorandum.”

Cemal was born in 1944 in Istanbul and is currently a columnist for T24.

He graduated from the Ankara University Political Sciences School in 1965 and started his career in journalism in weekly magazine Devrim in Ankara.

Among dailies he worked for were Yeni Ortam, Anka Ajansı and Günaydın.

In 1973, he started a column in daily Cumhuriyet and became its Ankara Bureau Chief in 1979, two years before he assumed the role of editor-in-chief of the popular daily.

Most recently, Cemal had worked at daily Milliyet for 15 years, but he was sorted out for his articles in 2013.