Famous singer detained over comments put under house arrest

ISTANBUL

The famous pop star Gülşen has been released from pre-trial arrest on charges of “inciting hatred” over a comment she made about religious schools and has been put under house arrest.

A challenge was filed by Gülşen’s lawyer, Emek Emre, against the formal arrest, saying that she was arrested with an unjust and unlawful decision as the elements of the crime charged against her were irrelevant and did not fulfill the conditions for her arrest.

Evaluating the challenge, the high court ruled the release of the singer but warned that she could be arrested again if she failed to comply with the judicial control measures.

Gülşen Bayraktar Çolakoğlu, a 46-year-old known by her first name on stage, was detained at home in Istanbul and taken to court on Aug. 25 over a comment she made about religious schools in a video that has set social media abuzz.

A judge then sent her to jail pending an investigation into remarks she made on stage in April about “İmam Hatip” religious schools raising children to be Muslim preachers.

In her testimony at the police station before being jailed, Gülşen stated that the clip showing her making the comments was a misunderstanding as it was shot while she was joking with her colleague. “This was not a speech I made to participants of the concert or the media,” she said.

This clip was shared months later for provocative purposes, according to Gülşen.

She also issued an apology on social media before her arrest after the clip went viral and created outrage among senior politicians this week.

“A joke I shared with my colleagues with whom I have worked for many years... was featured and published by those who aim to polarise society,” she said.