CHP Deputy Chair Batum Investigated under "301"?

Süheyl Batum, Deputy Chair of the Republican People's Party (CHP) will be investigated under the controversial Article 301 of the Turkish Criminal Law (TCK)  if the Minstry of Justice gives its approval. Reason for the investigation is Batum's following statement: "They destroyed the great military. Talking of a great military, it seems it is covered in paper. We thought of it as the military". This statement was part of Batum's speech at the Kemalists Concepts Associaiton (ADD) Zonguldak Branch on 5 Feburary.

Article 301 is entitled, "Insulting the Turkish People, Republic of Turkey and Governmental Institutions and Bodies".

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Deputy PM Bülent Arınç and other government officials ciritcized the statement since it allegedly supported a political uprising. Batum is now facing an investigation under Article 301 that has been opposed by they CHP for a long time.

In the run-up to the elections, former CHP Chair Deniz Baykal countered the amendment of Article 301 that was made in order not to appal the nationalist electorate. Now, the same law is being used against the CHP.

The Public Prosecutor of Zonguldak (western Black Sea coast), Hüseyin Özbakır, requested the permission of the Ministry of Justice for in investigation about Süheyl Batum.

The law took effect on 1 June 2005. Since then, it was used against Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink before he was assassinated on 19 January 2007; against lawyer Eren Keskin, journalists Arat Dink, İrfan Uçar, Rahmi Yıldırım, Ahment Şık and Serkis Seropyan, singer Ferhat Tunç, interpretor Atilla Tuygan, Prof. Baskın Oran, Prof. İbrahim Kabaoğlu and publisher Ragıp Zarakolu. Article 301, used against many journalists, writers and other people who  voiced their opinion, has not been lifted. An amendment in 2008 made it obligatory to attain the approval of the Ministry of Justice to open a trial.

Batum apologized for his statement and said, "If I saddened the military, I am the first one to feel sorry about that". (EÖ/VK)