Journalist Havva Karakaya from the local Kırşehir Posta newspaper was treated like a civil servant by the Kırşehir 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance. As reported on Thursday (28 July), the court decreed to prohibit Karakaya from performing his profession as a journalist for 375 days on the grounds of a news item he wrote.
In an interview with bianet, Karakaya said that he was going to lodge an appeal with the Court of Appeals 4th Chamber. He added that the lawyers he had consulted were also surprised about the decision.
Judge Kamuran Haydar presided over the final hearing. The court handed down a judicial fine corresponding to 300 days or ten months imprisonment respectively. The sentence stemmed from an article written by Karakaya on irregularities at the Kırşehir Municipality. Judge Haydar regarded the profession of journalism as a "professional organization comparable to a public institution" and prohibited Karakaya from performing his profession as a journalist for more than a year.
Karakaya added that he also received a monetary fine of TL 7,200 (€ 3,500). He told bianet that he was not going to step back from what he wrote and expressed his hope for the Court of Appeals' reversal.
In the reasoned decision, Judge Arslanoğlu referred to previous decisions given by the Court of Appeals Criminal General Assembly related to insult via the media. "The use of press freedom has previously been restricted according to the requirements of a democratic society in order to protect [a person's] reputation and rights, public health and morality, national security, public order, public safety and territorial integrity; in order to prevent crime or the disclosure of state secrets and in order to ensure the authority and the neutrality of the judiciary. A journalist has to take these limitations into account when making news".
The comment on "the profession of journalism as a professional organization like a public institution" the reasoned decision started as follows:
"Since the action was realized by the defendant who, according to Article 53.1 of the Turkish Criminal Law (TCK), is exercising a profession subject to the permission of a public institution or a professional organization like a public institution; because of the resulting monetary fine; because of committing the crime by the misuse of right and authority according to Article 53/5 TCK, the prohibition of exercising the profession of journalism for the duration of 375 days as stated in the verdict [was deemed suitable] (...)" (ÖÖ/ŞA/VK)
