The leader of its official opposition Turkey and possible candidate for the presidency during the next presidential election, Kemal Kilicdarogluis the first to be charged under the new misinformation law.
According to a Republican People’s Party (CHP) img, confirming the press reports, Kemal Kilicdaroglu is being prosecuted for “public dissemination of misleading information” by the Turkish police department.
Under Article 29 of this controversial law, which was passed last month by the Turkish parliament, Kemal Kilicdaroglu faces up to three years in prison.
On Monday, he had denounced via Twitter the responsibility of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) government for the spread of what he called a “meth epidemic” in Turkey.
The leader of the CHP, the largest opposition party in parliament, claimed that the government was using some of the dirty money from this trafficking to make up the public deficit.
In a video he posted on Twitter, he said: “They brought this drug into the country, told (traffickers) ‘come with your money’ and then turned a blind eye.”
Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu responded to him the next day, also via Twitter, saying that it does not befit a Turkish citizen, much less a party president, to slander the state, the police, the gendarmerie and the army.”
According to CHP lawyer Celal Çelik, quoted by the Turkish opposition-aligned Anka news agency, “the authorities had warned that Article 29 would be applied against political figures with the aim of restricting freedom of expression. That’s exactly what happened.”
The disinformation law, passed on October 13 despite strong criticism from human rights and press freedom groups, was published in the Government Gazette five days later.
Source: News Beast
I’m Robert Neff, a professional writer and editor. I specialize in the entertainment section, providing up-to-date coverage on the latest developments in film, television and music. My work has been featured on World Stock Market and other prominent publications.
