1,080 convicted in Erdoğan ‘insult’ cases in Turkey last year

ANKARA

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A total of 4,936 cases were opened in 2016 against people accused of “insulting” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, with courts convicting 1,080 of defendants, according to Justice Ministry statistics, daily Cumhuriyet reported on June 27. 

Some 46,193 legal procedures were carried out in cases of “insulting” the president last year, with the Justice Ministry reportedly allowing 4,936 cases to go ahead. 

A total of 4,750 people aged over 18 years old, 36 foreign nationals, and two legal entities were accused of “insulting” Erdoğan. Some 102 people aged between 12 and 15, as well as 138 people aged between 15 and 18, were accused on charges of “crimes against the sovereignty of the state and its bodies.”

The courts acquitted 679 people accused of these charges and suspended the pronouncement of the judgement for 867 others. “Insulting the president” is a crime in Turkey punishable by up to four years in jail. 

Meanwhile, Justice Ministry statistics also show that 95 people were convicted on charges of “spying” and “exposing government secrets” in 2016. Out of 3,857 legal proceedings, 807 cases were opened regarding these charges. Of those accused, 139 were foreign nationals and 34 were aged between 12 and 18.