No prosecution in Turkey’s Armenian apology campaign
Following complaints from city residents, the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Ankara, Turkey, last month launched an investigation into the campaign for a public apology for the World War I-era mass killings of Armenians. The complainants alleged that the campaign violated Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, which outlaws “insulting the Turkish nation”.
After reviewing the case, the office decided no prosecution was warranted. Some dissatisfied Turks have gone to court, claiming the investigation was inadequate.
Completing its investigation, the prosecutors’ office in Ankara last week rejected the demand and no charges were laid against the individuals who initiated the Internet campaign.
The citizens claimed in their objection submitted to a court in Ankara’s Sincan district that the prosecutor’s office did not conduct a detailed investigation into their petition, saying “the organizers were not even questioned” over the campaign, broadcaster CNNTurk reported.
“It has been decided that there is no need for criminal prosecution on the legal grounds that opposing opinions are also protected under freedom of thought in democratic societies,” the prosecutors’ office said in its ruling.
Allowing “opposing opinions” should drastically reduce the number of prosecutions under Article 301.
The apology has now gathered over 28,000 signatures.
[...] NO PROSECUTION in Turkey’s Armenian apology campaign …. [...]
[...] NO PROSECUTION in Turkey’s Armenian apology campaign …. [...]