TURKEY: 'Historic' Freedom of E

[kurdeng at aps.nl]

Subject: Re: TURKEY: 'Historic' Freedom of Expression Case Open

---------- Forwarded from : rich at pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel) ----------

/** headlines: 118.0 **/
** Topic: IPS: TURKEY-HUMAN RIGHTS: 'Historic' Freedom of Expression Case Open **
** Written  1:03 PM  Aug 28, 1995 by newsdesk in cdp:headlines **
From: IGC News Desk <newsdesk>
Subject: IPS: TURKEY-HUMAN RIGHTS: 'Historic' Freedom of Expression Case Open

/* Written  4:09 PM  Aug 27, 1995 by newsdesk in igc:mideast.news */
/* ---------- "IPS: TURKEY-HUMAN RIGHTS: 'Historic" ---------- */
       Copyright 1995 InterPress Service, all rights reserved.
          Worldwide distribution via the APC networks.

                      *** 24-Aug-95 ***

Title: TURKEY-HUMAN RIGHTS: 'Historic' Freedom of Expression Case Opens

By Nadire Mater

ISTANBUL, Aug 24 (IPS) - Turkey's intellectual community Thursday
claimed an initial victory when a state security court prosecutor
made what they described as a key concession in a case that is set
to put Turkish laws on freedom of expression under scrutiny.

Fifty of the country's leading writers, artists and actors have
been brought before the court for putting their seal of approval --
by way of signature -- to a series of reprinted banned articles in
contravention of Article 8 of the country's 'Anti-Terror Law'.

But when the case opened Thursday, Istanbul State Security Court
Prosecutor Aytac Tolay himself said what the intellectuals have
been claiming for the past several months which is that the
section under which they are charged in the four-year-old Anti-
Terror Law  goes against the Turkish constitution.

The law was enacted in 1991 seven years after the guerrilla
Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) took to arms in its struggle to try
to force the government to grant independent status to the
country's 15 million Kurds who are not even recognised as a
minority by the Turkish authorities.

Under Article 8, it a punishable offence to criticise the
government or its methods in pursuing its military campaign to try
to crush the PKK guerrillas whose main activity is concentrated in
south-east Turkey where several provinces are under emergency case
rule.

As a consequence, several pro-Kurdish newspapers have been banned
and there are instances where journalists and writers have been
jailed for being critical of the government's strong-arm tactics
in trying to crush the PKK. According to the government line, such
people are promoting ''separatism''.

State security courts throughout the country have in the past
four years tried about 3,000 cases related to provisions under the
Anti-Terror Law and 161 people have been convicted for violating
the law and have served or are serving jail sentences.

According to a recent report published by Turkey's Human Rights
Foundation, among the imprisoned are six pro-Kurdish DEP deputies,
seven academics, 116 journalists, 17 actors and six human rights
activists. Artists and trade union leaders have also been
convicted under the law.

The convictions have infuriated the intellectual community who
deliberately set out to challenge the law by approving the
republication of a collection of banned articles under the title
''Freedom of Thought in Turkey''.

The articles -- all devoted to the discussion of the Kurdish
issue and the ongoing war in the south-east -- included the work
of parliamentarians representing the banned pro-Kurdish Democracy
Party (DEP) and human rights activists.

''This case is historic in two senses,'' said one of the accused
Prof Bulent Tanor of Istanbul University Faculty of Law. ''First
of all this is the first instance in Turkey that a law is about to
be brought before the constitutional court due to pressure from
below.

''Moreover,'' he went on, ''this is proof that restrictions on
public discussion of the Kurdish issue, despite pressure from the
military, is not frowned on at least by part of the judiciary.''

In court Thursday, Tolay, in his opening remarks, noted that
while it was ''acceptable'' for the government to punish those who
sought to ''divide the unity of the state'', he said it went
against international norms and the Turkish constitution for the
government to suppress professional journalists or its critics.

He said such criticisms did not necessarily represent
''separatist propaganda'' yet as the law is written, it
effectively went against all principles in respect of freedom of
expression and allows the government to ''indiscriminately''
silence critics.

''The article further contradicts international treaties,
including the 1951 Convention on Protection of Human Rights and
Basic Liberties signed by the Council of Europe member
countries...'' Tolay told the presiding judges.

He further noted that Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe
and added: ''According to Article 90 of the Turkish Constitution,
provisions in these conventions should be granted equal force to
those in Turkish Law.''

As such, he concluded that ''Article 8, in its present form,
contradicts the essence of basic principles of our laws'', and to
pursue a case under this law would undermine the judicial system.
''Therefore it (this law) should be brought before the
Constitutional Court and be abolished.''

When it was their turn to respond, the defendants immediately
welcomed the prosecutor's remarks, and tried to capitalise on the
apparent concession by pressing for the abolition of other
Articles of the law under which they might also be tried.

''I completely agree with the prosecutor for the first time in
my life,'' said newspaper columnist Ahmet Altan. ''However, it is
not only Article 8 of the 'Anti-Terror Law' that needs to be
abolished. Article 312 of the penal code is also against the
Turkish Constitution and should be also brought before the
Constitutional Court.''

Article 312 deems it a criminal act to ''...openly agitate the
public...through racial, social, religious or sectarian bias''.
Tolay has already indicated that the state might pursue its case
under this provision in the law.

The case, which has been adjourned till Oct 26, is likely to last
several months with Turkish laws providing that all the accused be
given a chance to individually respond to the Istanbul state
security court prosecutor's opening statement.

Once they have all had their say, the judges will then decide
whether Article 8 should indeed be reviewed by the constitutional
court.

This is not the first time Article 8 has come under scrutiny.
Just last month when the parliament was debating amendments to the
constitution in a bid to bring Turkey in line with European Union
(EU) norms, left wing parliamentarians suggested that the
provision be amended or quashed.

However, Prime Minister Tansu Ciller's conservative True Path
Party and the main opposition Motherland Party -- also right-wing --
threw cold water on the proposal and the matter was deferred.

Senior military officials like Gen. Ahmet Corekci, also
campaigned against any changes to the provision. ''It would
undermine military moral at a time when a fierce combat against
terrorism is taking place,'' he said.

But the Turkish government is under strong pressure by the
European Parliament which is concerned about numerous claims by
human rights organisations that the military is committing several
rights abuses in its war with the Kurdish guerrillas which has
already claimed more than 18,000 lives. Civilians, guerrillas and
security personnel count among the dead.

The European parliamentarians have threatened to block Turkey's
aspirations to engage in a Customs Union agreement with the EU
unless it cleans up its act, and this includes amending
legislation deemed to be repressive. The agreement has already
been signed, but must be approved by the parliament in order to
become effective.

The Customs Union agreement is seen here as a first step towards
Turkey's future membership in the powerful political and economic
15-member EU bloc -- hence the passing of last month's so-called
''democratisation package'' that amended some sections of the
constitution that were not in keeping with Western European norms.

''Whether the EU puts pressure on Turkey or not, I am happy
that  I myself am putting pressure on the government,'' said film
critic Tugrul Eryilmaz, after Thursday's court appearance.

''People have indispensable rights, including freedom of
expression. Until this day I did not need to make a point on the
Kurdish issue. However I wish all who want to make a point to be
able to do so without facing any threat,'' Eryilmaz added.

Musician Sanar Yurdatapan, who is leading the freedom of
expression campaign, is however doubtful about the outcome of the
case. But he is prepared to be a martyr for the cause.

''Then we will take our place on the row of hundreds of
'prisoners of conscience'. And this will make life even more
difficult for the judges to decide on cases related to freedom of
expression,'' he told IPS.(END/IPS/EU-HD-IP/NM/CPG/95)


Origin: Amsterdam/TURKEY-HUMAN RIGHTS/
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