Ankara, Turkey – A Turkish court on Wednesday sentenced a man to five months in prison for “insulting a section of society” after he put up a banner saying Jews and Armenians were not allowed to enter his business.
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The ruling, which followed a complaint by a local human rights group, marks a change of public attitude towards minorities in European Union-aspirant Turkey.
Human rights groups and the EU have long accused Turkey of discrimination against its minorities.
Niyazi Capa, who heads a cultural association in the city of Eskisehir, west of Ankara, put up the banner to protest against Israel’s offensive in Gaza earlier this year, which drew widespread condemnation in predominantly Muslim Turkey.
However, the easing of curbs on freedom of expression and other liberal reforms as a result of Ankara’s drive to meet European standards have opened up debate in areas that were previously taboo.
Turkey, which historically has poor relations with Armenia, said in April it was close to establishing diplomatic relations after it closed its border with Armenia in 1993. Turkey and Armenia trace their own dispute back to the First World War killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday criticized state policies that led to the expulsion of tens of thousands of Christian ethnic Greeks in the 20th century as “fascist.”
Erdogan’s comments, the first of its kind by a prime minister, infuriated nationalists and other elements of Turkey’s conservative establishment.
only 5 months?!?!? let him rot in prison!
Wow! That sentence seems quite harsh though. Was he at least warned to remove the signs before he was arrested? I am not by any means defending his behavior, however the punishment does seem harsh.
What would happen to someone if they did this in the US? I guess some might argue that doing such a thing in the US is less likely to lead to violence than it might in Turkey?
This is truly wonderful news! I am amazed that Turkey put that guy in jail!
Wow!
I am shocked that we as frum jews are applauding Turkey’s actions.
Freedom of speech – even hate speech, are the fundamentals to a free society. If you outlaw “insulting a portion of society” you can use that same law for someone attempting to support Israel.
Hate speech, or inciting violence shouldn’t be protected. Clearly what this man did was inappropriate and shouldn’t be tolerated, however based on how the story was reported(are we missing some crucial details?) it seems like he was dealt with too harshly. Perhaps he might have been told on more than one occasion to remove the sign and refused to do so?