Thousands of people in Turkey faced court last year for “insulting” the president and state, according to a report by daily Birgun.
Citing Justice Ministry data, the report put the figure at 6,879. Among those who have been subjected to criminal investigation are 552 people below the age of 18.
“Insulting” the president, covered under article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code, is punishable by up to four years in prison, while those who “insult” the Turkish State and its institutions may be sentenced to prison terms of up to two years.
Nearly 3,500 people were convicted by courts, the report said, adding that 1,601 are actually serving terms while the punishments of 1,982 were postponed. 1,774 were acquitted.
Last year was still better than the year before in terms of “insult” cases though, as in 2022 some 5,000 had been convicted, and 1,872 were actually incarcerated.
Among those who faced court in 2022 on an allegation of an “insult” was a 13-year-old child. A criminal investigation was launched for what the child had written in a WhatsApp group.