Gezi Resistance Documentary Faces Investigation

Media Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation on “Başlangıç”, a documentary on Gezi Resistance produced by 49/51 Film and directed by Serkan Koç, for “insulting public workers” and “igniting public towards vengeance and hostility”. 

“In my statement today, I refused all charges on the case. The person who ignites public to vengeance and hostility is PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan himself. I will file a complaint against him,” director Serkan Koç told bianet. 

“The investigation was launched upon a complaint filed by a fellow citizen. We heard about it just today. There is no way this documentary contains insult. We were very sensitive on such issues.

“Released in June, the documentary has yet to find itself a platform in movie theaters. Most distributers were hesitant about screening the documentary. Instead of igniting vengeance and hostility, we would like to attract distributors here and abroad. We strongly reject accusations on insulting.

“As I told the prosecutor, the person who ignites public to vengeance and hostility is PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan himself. He made remarks like “They drank alcohol in the mosque”, “Taking the streets is not the point. We can confront them with 5,000 people”. These remarks could ignite the conservative factions of the society towards vengeance and hostility. Our documentary included those speeches as well. Using our documentary as evidence, we will also file a complaint against PM.” 

Click here for more information on the 53-minute long documentary. (EA/BM)