Turks Acquitted for Publishing Chomsky

A Turkish publisher, two editors and a translator have all been acquitted of insulting Turkishness. The four were charged for translating and publishing “Manufacturing Consent,” by Noam Chomsky (right), which criticizes Turkey’s treatment of Kurds.  Though the EU has pressured Turkey to reform its laws regarding expression, it remains a crime there to insult the state.

BBC:

The law has also been used against dozens of writers and journalists, including acclaimed novelists Orhan Pamuk - this year’s Nobel laureate for literature - and Elif Shafak.

Most have been acquitted.

Fatih Tas had published a Turkish version of Chomsky’s book Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media.

It examines what part the media plays in setting social agendas, and criticises Turkey’s treatment of its Kurdish minority.

Editors Omer Faruk Kurhan and Taylan Tosun, and translator Ender Abadoglu were also acquitted as the judge ruled there was no case to answer.

Read more

sl.wikipedia.org