Mabel Matiz given travel ban in ‘obscenity’ investigation over new song

Singer Mabel Matiz has been barred from traveling abroad as part of an “obscenity” investigation launched over their latest song “Ha Leylim” and its music video.

The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office opened the investigation on Aug 13, three days after the song was released. The investigation followed a targeted campaign against Matiz on social media and in the pro-government media.

Following questioning by prosecutors at İstanbul Courthose today, Matiz was referred to a court, which imposed an international travel ban on the singer.

The song's lyrics and video do not contain any explicit or sexual content. The video shows a man preparing to marry a woman exchanging contemplative looks with another man at the wedding venue. 

The song's video clip has got over four million views on YouTube since its release.

Matiz denies obscenity allegations

In their statement, Matiz said they wrote the song about two years ago and developed the concept for the music video with director Sinan Tuncay. They intended to depict traditional wedding celebrations from Turkey’s Thrace region, said Matiz.

The singer denied that the music video contained obscene material:

“My song is a work of art. The video contains no scenes, images or references of an obscene nature.

"The footage of two men looking at each other, which is at issue in the investigation, does not constitute the offense of obscenity, regardless of the nature of their relationship.”

“Two people looking at each other or dancing together is not a crime. They could be looking at each other with love, hatred or resentment. All of these are subjects of cinema, art and literature and should not be criminalized.”

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'I'm constantly forced to explain my work'

Matiz also said their works were being interpreted through the lens of their gender identity, resulting in them being forced to explain them to judicial authorities:

“I do not accept that criminal meanings are systematically attributed to many of my works based on my identity. I think it is unfair that I am constantly forced to explain my work.

"I sincerely and humbly ask myself whether any investigation would have been opened, or whether the same interpretations would have been made, if the same works had been created by another artist. I reject the accusations against me.” 

This is not the first time Matiz is investigated over a song. As an openly queer singer, they previously faced an obscenity case over their song “Perperişan,” released in September. They were acquitted in that case.

Matiz is a popular singer in Turkey, with more than 2 billion total streams on Spotify and a monthly audience of over 20 million on YouTube.

'Obscenity' investigations

In recent years, authorities have increasingly used obscenity laws. While this practice began with targeting adult-content creators, the scope of such investigations has now also extended beyond explicit material.

Public figures such as musicians and social media personalities faced obscenity charges over their statements and the content they produced.

Article 226 of the Turkish Penal Code prohibits the publication of obscene content through the media. The law covers "general obscenity" and "obscenity involving children" but does not provide a specific definition of obscene material.

Publishing or facilitating the publication of obscene images, writing or speech is punishable by six months to three years in prison and a judicial fine of up to 5,000 days.

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