Supreme Court Approved Sentence for Calling Parliament a "Stable"

The Court of Appeals approved the decision by a local court that had sentenced journalist Sakine Yalçın to a fine of TL 620 (€ 310) in compensation under allegations of insult to the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM). Yalçın is the former editorial manager of the "Efforts for Socialism in the 21^st Century" newspaper, Alınteri newspaper in short.

The unanimous decision was given by the Court of Appeals of the 9^th Circuit on 1 February 2010. Yalçın was officially notified a few days ago and received a payment order immediately. The case against the journalist had been opened on 10 February 2004.

In her article entitled "The class against the class" published on 14 September 2003, Yalçın wrote about approving publications by the "capital press" related to the parliamentary permission to send military troops to Iraq. Subsequently, she said that the news of established media organs had supported that tendency.

Harsh criticism of the permit

In the following article, the journalist criticized the TBMM's, the General Staff's and the government's approach in favour of the permit.

She wrote the following: "During this process of organization and solidarity, where we are taking new steps to become a social power, each move that tears the permit easily passed through the "stable" or the labour laws in the work places will deepen the crisis of our class solidarity".

"During a process of new steps towards organizational solidarity and social strength, permits being 'passed easily" through the stable every move to be made by us related to tear areas like labour law and work places will deepen the crisis of class solidarity".

The 2^nd Criminal Court of First Instance had sentenced Yalçin to imprisonment of six months according article 159 of the former Criminal Law ("insults" to the Turkish state) on 1 February 2007. The sentence was converted to monetary fine of TL 620.

The court had acquitted the journalist of charges of publicly insulting and ridiculing the state's military forces and the Republic.

Demirer's trial on "301" in June

Journalist and author Temel Demirer is also being tried under article 301 of the new Turkish Criminal Law (TCK) which was enforced on 1 June 2005. Article 159 of the former version of the TCK was replaced by the newly enforced article 301. Demirer's trial will be continued on 28 June.

Demirer informed bianet that the file was transferred from the Ankara 11^th to the 14^th Criminal Court of First Instance.

Deputy PM Çiçek: Permits issued for four cases in four months

In the UN Human Rights Council session on Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek had announced that the Ministry of Justice had only issued permission for four cases related to article 301 of a total of 222 applications throughout the first four months of the year. He described the system of the Ministry of Justice as "safe". However, it is not clear to whom these four files belong. (EÖ/VK)