Court Trying the Womens Slang Dictionary

The Beyoglu court decided to ask for an experts' report from the Literature School of the Istanbul University.

Bingolce, Sokmen and lawyer Canan Arin attended the hearing.

"The first dictionary of Turkish language should be triad too"

Arin told the court that he rejected report by the "Council of Protecting the Children from Harmful Publications," which was assigned as an experts' group for the trial. Arin repeated the first sentence of the report: "There can't be a dictionary of slang."

Arin later presented the court with part of a 262,000-word slang dictionary and the "Large Slang Dictionary."

Arin reminded the court that the first dictionary of Turkish language was "Divanu Lugat-it Turk" and said that dictionary should be confiscated and tried, "because there are slang words in that dictionary too."

Arin said he saw no need for an experts' report but argued that if there is to be one, the experts' group should be composed of linguists.

Half of the journalists at the hearing, half of them outside

Human rights activist Sanar Yurdatapan was also present at the hearing. Half of the journalists were let in to watch the hearing, while the others were told to remain outside.

At the end of the hearing, the court decided to ask for an experts' report from the Literature School of the Istanbul University, and said the next hearing would be on September 11, 2003.

The court had rejected demand to "confiscate"

The "Women's Slang Dictionary," was published by the Metis Publishing House on October 2001.

The Beyoglu Prosecutor Mustafa Gulsoy had gone to a Beyoglu court on December 30, 2001 and demanded that the dictionary is confiscated. The court had rejected Gulsoy's demands saying the "piece had carried the characteristics of a dictionary in its current form."

Later, Gulsoy sued writer Bingolce and publisher Sokmen for "publishing obscene books," based on articles 426/1, 427 and 119/1 of the Turkish Penal Code and article 16/4 of the law no:5680. (EA/NM)