16-year-old high school student reports to police station weekly for 'insulting the President'

It has been stated that the judicial control measure imposed on a 16-year-old girl, who was detained and charged five months ago in Istanbul's Sarıyer district for allegedly swearing as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's convoy passed by, will continue. The 16-year-old has been going to the police station every week for 5 months to sign in.

In her statement while in custody, the 16-year-old said, “I had an accident 6 months ago. On the day of the incident, while I was waiting at the pedestrian crossing, I got scared and reacted to a vehicle coming at high speed. I did not know that any state official, including the President, would be there. It is out of the question for me to insult any state official, including the President of the Republic of Turkey. I am a high school student and I have not been involved in any crime until now. Due to the trauma I experienced previously, my reaction was misunderstood and I did not swear. I just got scared and reacted. When the convoy came after the speeding vehicle and an official there intervened, I realized it was the President's convoy. I did not act with the intent to commit a crime,” she said.

WEEKLY SIGN-IN AND OVERSEAS TRAVEL BAN

According to the report by İsmail Arı from BirGün, the Istanbul 1st Criminal Judge of Peace released the 16-year-old under judicial control, requiring her to sign in once a week and imposing a ban on traveling abroad.

In the petition submitted to the Istanbul 1st Juvenile Court, the child's lawyer requested the removal of the judicial control measure that has been in place for 5 months, noting that the high school student is doing an internship. However, the court panel rejected the lawyer's request and stated that the judicial control would continue, meaning the child will continue to go to the police station every week to sign in. On the other hand, an indictment was prepared for the child on August 18. The public prosecutor requested that the child be punished for insulting the President, stating that there was “sufficient evidence to open a public lawsuit.”

25 THOUSAND 520 FILES OPENED JUST LAST YEAR

The Ministry of Justice's 2023 statistics revealed that investigations have been launched against many people, both young and old, in accordance with Articles 299 and 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). According to the statistics, files are opened against thousands of people every year in public prosecutor's offices on the grounds of 'insulting the President'. Within the scope of Articles 299 and 301 of the TCK, which define 'crimes against the symbols of the state's sovereignty and the dignity of its organs' but have been transformed into a 'tool to punish the opposition' during the AKP years, 25 thousand 520 files were opened in public prosecutor's offices in 2023 alone. The number of suspects in these files was stated as 18 thousand 856.

News Source: 12punto