30 November 2006
IFEX MEMBERS URGE ABOLITION OF CRIMINAL DEFAMATION LAWS
As Turkey seeks to join the European Union (EU), IFEX members are adding their voices to the growing international chorus calling on Turkey to reform its controversial defamation laws in order to meet the EU standards on freedom of expression and freedom of the press
The International Publishers Association (IPA), International PEN and ARTICLE 19 have written a letter to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan urging the government to remove Article 301 from the penal code.
Introduced in June 2005 as part of Turkey's overhaul of its penal code, Article 301 makes the act of "humiliating the government and judicial organs of the state or the police or military structures" punishable by six months to three years in prison.
BIANET reports that 69 court cases have been filed under Article 301 in the past year. Last year, acclaimed writer Orhan Pamuk - winner of this year's Nobel Prize for Literature, faced charges under the provision but had his case thrown out by a judge following international pressure.
IPA, International PEN and ARTICLE 19 say Article 301 is incompatible with rulings by the European Court of Human Rights, which state that defamation laws cannot be justified if their effect or purpose is to prevent legitimate criticism of officials or the exposure of official wrongdoing or corruption.
Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) has also urged the Turkish government to abolish Article 301. It cites a recent EU report on Turkey that said, "freedom of expression in line with European standards is not yet guaranteed by the present legal framework. Article 301 and other provisions of the Turkish penal code that restrict freedom of expression need to be brought in line with the European Convention of Human Rights."
In response to local and international pressure, Erdogan stated earlier this month that he was ready to receive proposals designed to make Article 301 more concrete "if problems exist due to the fact that it is abstract" and that "we will look at options in line with the spirit of the reforms in the Article 301 framework."
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1) Write to Prime Minister Erdogan urging him to abolish the provision.
Send appeals to:
His Excellency Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Prime Minister, State of Turkey
Basbakanlik
06573 Ankara, Turkey
Fax: +90 312 417 0476
2) Stay informed. Visit these links:
- Joint Letter by IPA, PEN, ARTICLE 19: http://www.article19.org/pdfs/letters/turkey-penal-code.pdf- International PEN: http://www.internationalpen.org.uk- IPA: http://www.ipa-uie.org/- ARTICLE 19: http://www.article19.org- BIANET: http://www.bianet.org/2006/11/01_eng/news87663.htm- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19666- Nationalism and the Press: http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2006/turkey_3-06/turkey_3-06.html- EU Report on Turkey: http://tinyurl.com/266avp