Prosecutor Deemed "Fist" Column as Freedom of Expression

The Diyarbakır Public Prosecution assessed the controversial article of Hürriyet newspaper writer Yılmaz Özdil, who had approved the physical attack on Kurdish politician Ahmet Türk, as within the limits of "press freedom". The co-chair of the defunct pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) Türk was punched in his face after a court hearing in Samsun (Black Sea Coast) in April this year. His nose got broken. The Press Council had previously reached the same conclusion regarding Özdil's column.

The Chief Prosecution completed the investigation launched upon a complaint filed by 36 lawyers and decreed against a prosecution of journalist Özdil. The prosecution claimed that the writing was to be seen in the scope of the freedom to criticism and the right of freedom of thought.

Chief Prosecution: No deliberate offence

The decision stated that "in the context of the entire writing, it was clearly understood that writer Yılmaz Özdil had no conscious intention of 'praising a crime and a criminal' or 'inciting the public to hatred and hostility related to ethnic origins'. It was furthermore understood that he compared certain events and communicated them to the public with the intention of emphasizing conflicts experienced in this country and different implementations. The action remained within the right to voice a personal opinion as it is a journalist's duty and within the scope of the freedom to criticize", the prosecution concluded.

36 lawyers of the Diyarbakır Bar Association had filed a criminal complaint against Özil on 15 Arpil, one day after the column had been published in the nation-wide daily.

'Interpreter of the public opinion'

Ahmet Türk was attacked on 12 April this year when he left the court after a hearing related to the killing of two people and four wounded in the city of Muş/Bulanık (south-eastern Turkey).

Özdil commented on the incident in a colum published in Hürriyet newspaper on 14 April entitled "The Fist". He said, "The punch was put in the place of the 'hammer of justice'. The person who punched Ahmet Türk on his nose became the interpreter of the feelings of many people in this country. [...] Because the nonsense of the 'opening' process that legitimated terrorism is not a one-sided issue. On the other hand it initiated the creation of 'bandid heroes'".

The Press Council did not see any reasons for a complaint and deemed the writing as within the limits of "freedom of expression". (EÖ/VK)