Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has denied that the court case being leveled against the journalists Can Dundar and Erdem Gul constitutes a free speech issue. Instead he argues that what they done merited them being charged with espionage.
“These reports pertain to espionage. The issue is about aid materials sent to Syrian Turkmens. This is not a matter of two journalists expressing their opinion,” Davutoglu told a news conference on Wednesday according to Today’s Zaman.
The journalists released video footage purporting to show Turkey’s intelligence service delivering arms over the border to fighters in Syria. An issue Ankara is extremely sensitive about.
The two journalists belong to the Cumhuriyet daily were jailed for 92 days before Turkey’s Constitutional Court had them released saying that amounted to a violation of their rights. A decision Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he does “not obey or respect.”
If found guilty of the charges of “espionage” and “aiding a terrorist organization,” both these journalists will face life in prison.
Last Saturday while in the middle of giving an interview to the IMC TV station they were suddenly taken off the air by the Turkish government which alleged that the station was “spreading terrorist” propaganda. A move its owner believes to be wholly political, especially given the moment it was shutdown.
Davutoglu’s comments come amid a plethora of cases wherein the government invariably argues free speech in Turkey does not mean one has the right to “insult” the president. On Tuesday Turkey’s Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said that the Justice Ministry had permitted the arrest of a total of 1,845 people for simply insulting President Erdogan.
Speaking to Parliament Bozdag said he found it “shameful” even reading some of the things said about the Turkish president. “I don’t think you could read these [insults] without blushing. Nobody should have the freedom to swear,” he argued.
Bozdag legally justified locking up people for simply insulting the president by invoking Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code which says anyone found guilty of insulting the president could find themselves in prison for one to four years.
Erdogan’s own lawyers have, according to Reuters, sued many people including cartoonists, teenagers and in one case a former Miss Turkey winner.
In one particular case last month a truck driver from Izmir leveled criminal charges against his own wife for insulting the president last month. He regretted his wife’s subsequent filing for divorce but said he doesn’t regret his actions.
“These reports pertain to espionage. The issue is about aid materials sent to Syrian Turkmens. This is not a matter of two journalists expressing their opinion,” Davutoglu told a news conference on Wednesday according to Today’s Zaman.
The journalists released video footage purporting to show Turkey’s intelligence service delivering arms over the border to fighters in Syria. An issue Ankara is extremely sensitive about.
The two journalists belong to the Cumhuriyet daily were jailed for 92 days before Turkey’s Constitutional Court had them released saying that amounted to a violation of their rights. A decision Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he does “not obey or respect.”
If found guilty of the charges of “espionage” and “aiding a terrorist organization,” both these journalists will face life in prison.
Last Saturday while in the middle of giving an interview to the IMC TV station they were suddenly taken off the air by the Turkish government which alleged that the station was “spreading terrorist” propaganda. A move its owner believes to be wholly political, especially given the moment it was shutdown.
Davutoglu’s comments come amid a plethora of cases wherein the government invariably argues free speech in Turkey does not mean one has the right to “insult” the president. On Tuesday Turkey’s Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said that the Justice Ministry had permitted the arrest of a total of 1,845 people for simply insulting President Erdogan.
Speaking to Parliament Bozdag said he found it “shameful” even reading some of the things said about the Turkish president. “I don’t think you could read these [insults] without blushing. Nobody should have the freedom to swear,” he argued.
Bozdag legally justified locking up people for simply insulting the president by invoking Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code which says anyone found guilty of insulting the president could find themselves in prison for one to four years.
Erdogan’s own lawyers have, according to Reuters, sued many people including cartoonists, teenagers and in one case a former Miss Turkey winner.
In one particular case last month a truck driver from Izmir leveled criminal charges against his own wife for insulting the president last month. He regretted his wife’s subsequent filing for divorce but said he doesn’t regret his actions.
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