Sunday, June 11, 2017

"Hırsız, katil Erdoğan": Turkish protesters sentenced to imprisonment for... defaming President Erdogan!

According to soL international10 protestors- including 3 members of the Turkish Communist Party (TKP)- were sentenced to imprisonment on June 9th for having held a press statement to protest the Islamic State's bomb attack on October 10, 2015 outside Ankara central railway station.

More specifically, some protestors, including members of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), made a press statement in October 2015 in Turkey’s western city of Manisa to protest the Islamic State's bomb attack that killed more than 100 people and wounded many hundreds during the mass rally of political parties and trade unions with the title of “Labor, Peace and Democracy”. The attack became the deadliest terror attack in modern Turkish history. 

According to a libel suit about the press statement, the protesters “defamed” Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan through their slogans, "Hırsız, katil Erdoğan" (Thief, murderer Erdoğan). 

Despite lawyers objected the court, the verdict of the court was terminated. Accordingly, 10 protesters, including 3 TKP members, were sentenced to imprisonment for 11 months and 20 days.