MEDIA MONITORING DATABASE
Tunca Öğreten – trial for “insulting the President of the Republic”
RELATED PERSON OR INSTITUTION
Tunca Öğreten
CITY
İstanbul
YEAR OF INTERFERENCE
2019
LAST UPDATED
24/11/2019
TYPE OF STATEMENT
Political
MEDIUM
Internet
Internet News Portal
THE TITLE OF WHOSE RIGHT IS INTERFERED
Journalist
RIGHTS GUARANTEED UNDER THE RIGHT OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Right to Impart Information and Ideas
TYPE OF INTERFERENCE
Judicial Interference
Criminal Courts
Approval of the indictment and initiating the prosecution
THE LEGAL GROUNDS FOR INTERFERENCE
Turkish Penal Code
Art. 299

After the “Erdoğan Selfie” cover of the Nokta magazine was pulled off the shelves in September 2015, Perihan Mağden, a columnist of the magazine, gave an interview to Tunca Öğreten, who was an editor at diken.com.tr news website at the time. The interview was also published on the website of Yurt newspaper. Afterward, a lawsuit was filed against Perihan Mağden and Tunca Öğreten as well as the then Yurt newspaper editors Orhan Şahin and Mehmet Çağlar on the charge of “Insulting the President of the Republic.”

In their last hearing held at the İstanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance on January 10, the court ruled that writer Mağden and journalist Öğreten shall be given a judicial fine of 7 thousand Turkish Lira (approx. 1,270 USD) each on charge of “insulting the President.” Journalists Orhan Şahin and Mehmet Çağlar have been acquitted of the charged offence.

The sentences of Perihan Mağden and Tunca Öğreten have not been deferred. The verdict will be taken to the court of appeal.