Prosecutor Declines Case, Underlines Press Freedom

A Turkish prosecutor declined to investigate the Radikal newspaper case saying that alleged complaints from the local municipality should be considered in terms of press freedom.

The alleged complaints swirled around a news article appeared on Radikal newspaper in July, claiming that Istanbul's Fatih district municipality favored contractors over neighborhood residents on a construction case.

Fatih Municipality immediately filed a lawsuit against Radikal, saying that the newspaper humiliated their municipality with fake documents and false accusations.

The prosecutor undermined that administrative institutions should be tolerant towards harsh criticism, citing a former European Court of Human Rights verdict on pro-Kurdish newspaper Özgür Gündem.

"European Declaration of Human Rights Article 10 protects the expression of provable views, as well as speculations, opinions and criticism that are hard to prove," the prosecutor said in a statement. "When the article is viewed as a whole, it depends on some views that contain a judgement. These views must be considered within press freedom. Thus, no prosecution will be made." (EA)

*This article was compiled from Radikal newspaper.