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Today's Zaman, Turkey
May 26 2013
Sevan NiĆ?anyan and freedom of expression
MARKAR ESAYAN
[email protected]
For a while now, what Sevan NiĆ?anyan, a writer and philologist, has
published on his personal blog on Islam and its prophet has been
discussed in Turkey.
This did not remain just a discussion; in the end, NiĆ?anyan received
an almost 14-month prison sentence in a legal case initiated against
him. If this verdict is confirmed by the Court of Appeals, NiĆ?anyan
will go to jail. He is pretty sure that his remarks are not insulting.
He says he would take the case to the European Court of Human Rights
(ECtHR) and become rich. The remarks he made that caused his convicted
on are as follows: `It is not [a] `hate crime' to poke fun at some
Arab leader who, many hundred years ago, claimed to have established
contact with [the] Deity and made political, economic and sexual
profit as a result. It is almost a kindergarten-level case of what we
call freedom of expression.'
Amongst other works, NiĆ?anyan is also the author of a remarkable book,
`The Wrong Republic.' This book, where he bitterly criticizes the
Kemalist Republican regime, attracted a great deal of attention
because of some ultra-liberal comments and remarks. The book addresses
the concerns and suspicions of people like me who react negatively to
the first republic, but most of the analyses in this book are
consistent with historical reality. I am giving this background
information to get you familiar with his personality.
In case this verdict is confirmed by the Court of Appeals, the
European court will most probably disapprove of it, because no matter
how shocking they are, NiĆ?anyan's remarks are not considered to be a
hate crime or an insult by European standards. The line between
freedom of expression and the definition of a hate crime is relevant
to the democratic culture of a country, and it is pretty
controversial. The Handyside verdict underlines that freedom of
thought and expression is applicable to shocking and marginal
statements and remarks that remain outside the sphere of normal
speech.
In Turkey, anybody can say anything about Christianity. There is no
risk at all in this. Many times, I have heard on TV the Bible being
referred to as a book of pornography, that it is fabricated and that
Jesus was a drunken fraud. These are pretty sad remarks for a
Christian. But as a Christian, I believe that non-Christians should be
free to make these remarks and that their lives should not be at risk
because of such remarks. However, NiĆ?anyan has so far received many
death threats.
The religious people should acknowledge this: Prophets may be
untouchable and respected for those who subscribe to that religion,
but those who do not believe this do not have to act this way. You
cannot expect an atheist to behave like a pious person. He would have
become a Muslim or Christian etc. if he had had such beliefs, anyway.
At the same time, we cannot expect a Muslim to believe Jesus is God
and a Christian to believe Muhammad is the last prophet of God. And in
case they express their opinions on these matters, they cannot be
looked at as insulting other religions. In other words, a Muslim would
deny the doctrine of another religion while defending his own doctrine
-- but where should we draw the line between insult and freedom of
expression?
I do not agree with NiĆ?anyan because I believe in prophecy and holy
scripts. I prefer creating a discussion by reliance on a constructive
style and mutual respect that would not rule out the exchange of
ideas. However, because of such legal cases and death threats, I am
unable to now bitterly criticize NiĆ?anyan. Freedom of expression is
being restricted for those who do not agree with that expression as
well. I believe that this is also harmful to Islam as well. It is not
proper to present Islam as an authoritarian religion. Being a faithful
Muslim actually requires calmness vis-Ă-vis such strong criticisms. I
hope that Turkey becomes a role model to the world in this matter as
well.
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-316566-sevan-nisanyan-and-freedom-of-expression.html
From: A. Papazian
May 26 2013
Sevan NiĆ?anyan and freedom of expression
MARKAR ESAYAN
[email protected]
For a while now, what Sevan NiĆ?anyan, a writer and philologist, has
published on his personal blog on Islam and its prophet has been
discussed in Turkey.
This did not remain just a discussion; in the end, NiĆ?anyan received
an almost 14-month prison sentence in a legal case initiated against
him. If this verdict is confirmed by the Court of Appeals, NiĆ?anyan
will go to jail. He is pretty sure that his remarks are not insulting.
He says he would take the case to the European Court of Human Rights
(ECtHR) and become rich. The remarks he made that caused his convicted
on are as follows: `It is not [a] `hate crime' to poke fun at some
Arab leader who, many hundred years ago, claimed to have established
contact with [the] Deity and made political, economic and sexual
profit as a result. It is almost a kindergarten-level case of what we
call freedom of expression.'
Amongst other works, NiĆ?anyan is also the author of a remarkable book,
`The Wrong Republic.' This book, where he bitterly criticizes the
Kemalist Republican regime, attracted a great deal of attention
because of some ultra-liberal comments and remarks. The book addresses
the concerns and suspicions of people like me who react negatively to
the first republic, but most of the analyses in this book are
consistent with historical reality. I am giving this background
information to get you familiar with his personality.
In case this verdict is confirmed by the Court of Appeals, the
European court will most probably disapprove of it, because no matter
how shocking they are, NiĆ?anyan's remarks are not considered to be a
hate crime or an insult by European standards. The line between
freedom of expression and the definition of a hate crime is relevant
to the democratic culture of a country, and it is pretty
controversial. The Handyside verdict underlines that freedom of
thought and expression is applicable to shocking and marginal
statements and remarks that remain outside the sphere of normal
speech.
In Turkey, anybody can say anything about Christianity. There is no
risk at all in this. Many times, I have heard on TV the Bible being
referred to as a book of pornography, that it is fabricated and that
Jesus was a drunken fraud. These are pretty sad remarks for a
Christian. But as a Christian, I believe that non-Christians should be
free to make these remarks and that their lives should not be at risk
because of such remarks. However, NiĆ?anyan has so far received many
death threats.
The religious people should acknowledge this: Prophets may be
untouchable and respected for those who subscribe to that religion,
but those who do not believe this do not have to act this way. You
cannot expect an atheist to behave like a pious person. He would have
become a Muslim or Christian etc. if he had had such beliefs, anyway.
At the same time, we cannot expect a Muslim to believe Jesus is God
and a Christian to believe Muhammad is the last prophet of God. And in
case they express their opinions on these matters, they cannot be
looked at as insulting other religions. In other words, a Muslim would
deny the doctrine of another religion while defending his own doctrine
-- but where should we draw the line between insult and freedom of
expression?
I do not agree with NiĆ?anyan because I believe in prophecy and holy
scripts. I prefer creating a discussion by reliance on a constructive
style and mutual respect that would not rule out the exchange of
ideas. However, because of such legal cases and death threats, I am
unable to now bitterly criticize NiĆ?anyan. Freedom of expression is
being restricted for those who do not agree with that expression as
well. I believe that this is also harmful to Islam as well. It is not
proper to present Islam as an authoritarian religion. Being a faithful
Muslim actually requires calmness vis-Ă-vis such strong criticisms. I
hope that Turkey becomes a role model to the world in this matter as
well.
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-316566-sevan-nisanyan-and-freedom-of-expression.html
From: A. Papazian