Journalists Sued Every Day Allegedly Insulting the President Erdoğan

Managing Editor Vural Nasuhbeyoğlu and Publisher Mehmet Akif Koşar of Evrensel Daily have been sued for “insulting the President” according to the Article 299 of Criminal Code of the Republic of Turkey (TCK). The trial will start on October 1, 2015.

According to the Article 299, a person who insults the President shall be sentenced to 1 to 4 years in prison.

Evrensel’s lead writer İhsan Çaralan and other columnists Mustafa Köz and  Erol Aral also were opened investigation for their columns.

In the first three weeks of September, at least 19 media employees were sued: 

Caricaturist Musa Kart (Cumhuriyet), journalists and columnists Ekrem Dumanlı (Zaman),Ertuğrul Özkök (Hürriyet), Yavuz Baydar (Bugün), Tayfun Talipoğlu(Yurt), Onur Erem (BirGün), Murat Çapan (Nokta), Hasan Cemal (T24),Aytekin Gezici (Twitter),  Gökçe Fırat Çulhaoğlu (Türk Solu), Atilla Taş(Meydan), Gülizar Baki (Meydan), Levent Kenez (Meydan), Ahmet Altan Vural Nasuhbeyoğlu (Evrensel), Mehmet Akif Koşar (Evrensel),İhsan Çaralan  (Evrensel), Erol Aral (Evrensel) and Mustafa Köz(Evrensel).

Before September…

Many columnists and editor-in-chiefs; Özgür Mumcu (Cumhuriyet), Barış Pehlivan(Odatv.com), Ender İmrek (Evrensel), Barış İnce (BirGün) were put on trial according to the Article 299 before September. Judicial oppression from many different politic people also affects the universities and activist people. (EÖ/BD)

 Click here to read the article in Turkish

*evrensel's headline in English: "100% Censorship , 90% Fear!"

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