Turkish Press Ordered to Pay Compensation for Insulting LGBT People

By  Guest Dan Litttauer, 9.01.2012

Turkey’s High Court of Appeals has ordered the Turkish daily paperVakit,  formerly known as Yeni Akit , to pay compensation for insulting LGBT people in a headline which the publication printed back in 2008,

According to a report published by Hürriyet, Yeni Akit had printed an article titled “Üskül Prefers Perverts,” which was about Zafer Üskül, the then head of the Turkish Parliamentary Human Rights Commission who attended an “International Anti-Homophobism Meeting” organized by KAOS GL, a leading support organization for Turkey’s LGBT community.

The article written by columnist Serdar Arseven described Üskül as “an AKP [Justice and Development Party] member who gave assurances to she-males” in reference to his statement during the meeting that the government guaranteed that LGBT people would not be segregated due to their sexual orientations. “[Üskül] went on and attended a meeting by sexual perverts! A meeting of [gays],” Arseven wrote.

KAOS GL filed a lawsuit against Yeni Akit and Arseven, seeking compensation for the headline and the related piece. The lawsuits, however, were rejected by two Ankara courts on the grounds that the newspaper was “within the limits of criticism.”

The High Court of Appeals overruled the judgements of the two courts, saying, “The freedom of the press does not encompass the freedom to insult the personal freedoms of individuals.”

The court stated that Yeni Akit insulted people with different sexual orientations in a way which could not be considered criticism and passed a sentence; the paper has been ordered to pay 4,000 Turkish Liras while Arseven has been sentenced to pay 2,000 liras in damages.