Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Former Miss Turkey Convicted of insulting Erdogan

Merve Buyuksarac, a former Miss Turkey, was convicted on Tuesday for supposedly insulting President Erdogan on her social media page.  A Turkish court in Istanbul found Buyuksarac guilty of slander against Erdogan and sentenced her to 14 months, but suspended the sentence on the condition that she does not "re offend" in the next five years. Buyuksarac is denying any ill postings towards President Erdogan and her lawyer claims they will take the case to the European Court of Justice to fight the sentencing. This is not the first time Erdogan has been upset with a post concerning him on Social Media. Other Turkish and non Turkish citizens have felt the wrath of Erdogan.  Erdogan has filed over 2,000 cases of defamation since coming into office.With incidents like this occurring more and more often, many have noted that Turkey has become far more authoritarian than democratic since Erdogan entered as president and close eye should be kept on the country to ensure that democracy does not completely deteriorate. 
Ashley Clayton 
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/world/middleeast/miss-turkey-convicted-erdogan.html?ref=world&_r=0

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