Turkish newspaper Birgün journalist Barış Inje was sentenced to 21 months in prison for publishing an article which, in the opinion of the Court, contained insults to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, reported on Wednesday publishing house itself.
The reason for prosecution was an article published in December 2013, which dealt with the corruption scandal involving senior government officials, which erupted in Turkey then. The article was written as an acrostic, the first letters of the lines formed the words “Tayyip – thief”. Though Inje explained this as an accident, he was charged with insulting Erdogan.
The newspaper Birgün announced its intention to appeal the verdict in the Constitutional Court. Earlier, Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ said that 1845 citizens are under investigation for their alleged insulting of Erdogan. For insulting the President of Turkey law provides a fine or imprisonment for a term of one to four years. The opposition accuses the authorities that they use this section for repression against those who disagree with the policy pursued by Erdogan.