CARICATURSIT OZDABAK FACES 20,000 TL COMPENSATION CLAIM

BIA Net
ssion/120078-caricatursit-ozdabak-faces-20-000-tl- compensation-claim
Feb 16 2010
Turkey

Illustrator Halil Ibrahim Ozdabak from Yeni Asya newspaper is tried
with a TL 20,000 compensation claim after he had already been on trial
for the very same caricature showing "a court podium on top of a tank".

16 February 2010, Tuesday A compensation case against caricaturist
Halil Ibrahim Ozdabak from Yeni Asya (‘New Asia’) newspaper has been
launched on the grounds of a caricature published on 21 May 2009.

The illustration refers to President Judge Osman Kacmaz of the
Sincan (central Anatolia) 1st High Criminal Court who intends to
prosecute President Abdullah Gul regarding the investigation into
"Lost Billions". It shows a person in a judge’s robe on a podium
positioned on a tank, ignoring the road sign to "Ergen" but instead
following the sign to "Sincan Avenue".

TL 20,000 compensation claim Ozdabak faces a compensation claim of
20,000 Turkish Lira (TL) in the latest case launched on the grounds
of the caricature.

The case will be heard at the Sincan 2nd Criminal Court of First
Instance on 23 March.

Additionally, Ozdabak is prosecuted under charges of article 125 of
the Turkish Crimial Code (TCK) under charges of "insulting personal
rights", facing prison sentence of two years and eight months. The
case was postponed to 22 February.

Prosecutor Ali Cakır, who filed the case against caricaturist Ozdabak
on 18 August 2009, previously prepared an indictment on "influencing
the judiciary" against Milliyet and Radikal newspapers for criticizing
the cancellation of the Ottoman Armenian Conference. Furthermore,
the prosecutor filed a complaint against artist Bulent Ersoy for
"alienating the public from military service" and launched an
investigation into artist Hulyar AvÅ~_ar.

Acquittal for "Owl in a judge’s robe"

Oydabak was also tried for illustrating Supreme Court Public Prosecutor
Abdurrahman Yalcınkaya, who filed a closure case against the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AKP) and was depicted in the caricature
as an owl in a judge’s robe. The cartoonist was acquitted on 24 March
2009.