Woman sentenced to 11 months in jail for ‘insulting Erdoğan’

İZMİR – Doğan News Agency

DHA photo

A Turkish woman was sentenced to 11 months in prison on Jan. 20 for “insulting” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan by shouting and directing a hand gesture toward him in the Aegean province of İzmir in 2014.

An Izmir court sentenced economist Filiz Akıncı to 11 months and 20 days in jail for the offence, made while Erdoğan was departing from a rally in Gündoğdu Square on March 16, 2014, when he was still prime minister and leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP). 

In the case’s sixth hearing, the judge sentenced Akıncı to six months in prison but then doubled the ruling to one year as the injured party (Erdoğan) is a public official. The sentence was subsequently reduced to 11 months and 20 days due to her good conduct during the hearing. 

The court also ruled for Akıncı to pay 1,800 Turkish Liras in legal fees to Erdoğan’s lawyer. 

In defense of Akıncı, lawyer Anıl Güler argued that Erdoğan was attending the rally as the leader of a political party, not as the prime minister, thus meaning that the case could not be considered an example of “defaming a public official.”