2016 Tyrkia: Perihan Magden
Den tyrkiske forfatteren Perihan Magden risikerer flere års fengsel, anklaget for å ha fornærmet den Tyrkias president Erdogan.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdag
The case against author Perihan Magden
PEN International has received alarming reports regarding Perihan Magden, who is facing trial for allegedly defaming the President of Turkey. If convicted, she faces a possible prison term of up to four years.
PEN International opposes criminalization of defamation in all cases and calls on the Turkish authorities to drop all charges against Magden for her legitimate expression as a political commentator.
We would like to remind you, the Turkish authorities, that the limits of acceptable criticism of politicians and senior public officials are wider that for private individuals, a principle which has been tried successfully before the European Court of Human Rights. We would also like to remind you that Turkey has the obligation to respect the right to freedom of expression under the European Convention of Human Rights.
We urge you, people of power and authority, to look into the case against Perihan Magden and drop all charges against her, in the name of freedom of expression as laid down in international conventions to which Turkey is a signatory.
Yours sincerely
Aase Gjerdrum (Ms)
Member of PEN International, Norwegian centre
