The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled that the freedom of expression of Vedat Şorli, who was sentenced to 11 months and 20 days in prison due to insulting the President through his Facebook posts in 2014, was violated. The court further demanded that Article 299 of the Turkish Criminal Code (TCK) on the penalisation due to insulting the President be amended in accordance with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) precedents on freedom of expression.
Şorli had remained under arrest for 2 months due to the images he shared in 2014 and 2016, and his 11-month imprisonment sentence has later been deferred for 5 years.
Şorli’s first Facebook post was a cartoon of former US President Barack Obama kissing President Erdoğan, who is depicted in a women’s dress. On the speech bubble above Erdogan’s picture, it was written in Kurdish, “Will you give me the deed of Syria, my dear husband?”
19.10.2021
bianet.org
Twitter: @BenanMolu