NTV MSNBC, Turkey
Dec 26 2007

Turkey preparing changes to controversial law on freedom of speech

Critics of Article 301 say the law is used to restrict freedom of
expression.

Güncelleme: 12:41 TSÝ 26 Aralýk 2007 Çarþamba

ANKARA – Amendments to an article of the Turkish penal code seen as
limiting freedom of speech are being drafted and will be submitted to
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan within 15 days, a senior minister
said late Tuesday.

Having canvassed a range of opinions, amendments were being drafted
to change Article 301 of the penal code, Justice Minister Mehmet Ali
Sahin said.

Under the proposed amendments, permission of the Justice Ministry
would be required before an investigation could be launched into any
alleged breach of Article 301, the minister said.

Article 301 deals with the crime of `insulting Turkishness’ or
insulting Turkish identity. The article has been widely criticised
both in Turkey and abroad for restricting freedom of speech. In
recent years, a number of writers, journalists and intellectuals have
been prosecuted under Article 301.

They include Orhan Pamuk, Turkey’s Noble Prize winning novelist; and
Hrant Dink, a Turkish-Armenian journalist who was gunned down outside
his office in Istanbul in January this year.

In its annual report on Turkey’s progress in meeting the requirements
of membership of the European Union, issued in late November, the
European Commission said that Ankara still had to make a significant
effort to strengthen freedom of expression.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress