Turkish pianist gets suspended jail term for blasphemy

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15 Apr 2013, 6:05 am

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[u]Turkish pianist gets suspended jail term for blasphemy

ISTANBUL — An Istanbul court on Monday slapped world-renowned pianist Fazil Say with a 10-month suspended jail term for blasphemy, the latest in a series of cases to raise eyebrows about Turkey's dismal record on freedom of speech.

The court handed down the sentence after finding Say guilty of "insulting religious values of a part of the population" in a series of tweets that critics said insulted Islam and Muslims. The pianist was not present in court during the sentencing.

The court ordered a "supervised release" for Say, meaning that he would be free as long as he did not commit a similar crime within five years.

This is shameful. Blasphemy laws are a massive affront to free speech. I hope that someday that Turkey will end up with a surge of support for secularism and this hateful pandering to religious nonsense can be put where it belongs - in the bin.

Good on Fazıl Say.

thomas81
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15 Apr 2013, 9:38 am

I think its important to note that this sentence (which is more of a reprimand than a punishment as no actual punitive measures were carried out) has triggered massive protests across Istanbul. Its a unpopular new item in Turkish legislation that has angered and alienated the majority of Turkish society.

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lotuspuppy
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15 Apr 2013, 10:15 am

This is sad, but not entirely unexpected. Turkey is a very secular society, and its observance rate for Islam is about the same as in many Western European nations. Since the mildly Islamist AKP party formed a government back in 2003, religion has been creeping into the public realm. I don't think it's a long term concern for Turkey, (the Turkish military has a great track record of keeping religion in check), but it is worrying.

BeautifulTechno
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15 Apr 2013, 11:01 am

Seems like they are secularists anymore.

ruveyn
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15 Apr 2013, 11:11 am

Islam and liberty cannot co-exist.

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15 Apr 2013, 11:18 am

I'm generally opposed to censorship and laws curtailing the freedom of speech but expect under a UKIP government to find yourself nabbed for bad words against or distasteful representation of Winston Churchill.

thomas81
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15 Apr 2013, 11:35 am

ruveyn wrote:

Islam and liberty cannot co-exist.

I am accused of zero-sum politics, then you come out with nuggets like this.

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visagrunt
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15 Apr 2013, 12:07 pm

ruveyn wrote:

Islam and liberty cannot co-exist.

Of course they can. What a moronic claim.

The fact that there are many places in which Islam and liberty don't co-exist does not prove your thesis.

If we accept that the OECD countries are also those with the greatest amount of personal freedom in the world, then I think that you will find that Islam can exist quite peacefully in all of them without threatening anyone's liberty.

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15 Apr 2013, 4:02 pm

visagrunt wrote:

Of course they can. What a moronic claim.

He's right. Islam implemented to its full extent - including a judicial system run on Sharia - is totalitarian theocracy.

Islam can exist with liberty if a lot of the scriptures are not implemented or are ignored, but then it's not really Islam, is it?

Last edited by Tequila on 15 Apr 2013, 4:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

ruveyn
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15 Apr 2013, 4:05 pm

Tequila wrote:

visagrunt wrote:

Of course they can. What a moronic claim.

Which is to say that Islam qua religion is totally at odds with liberty as we understand it in the U.S. Islam is intrinsically totalitarian and anti liberty.

There goes your Muslim; different mountain, different god.

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15 Apr 2013, 4:33 pm

ruveyn wrote:

Which is to say that Islam qua religion is totally at odds with liberty as we understand it in the U.S.

'Liberty' is a weasel word that you can't claim a monopoly over and claim 'we are it'.

Many different cultures and ideologies have their own ideas about freedom, liberty justice etc.

Frankly many countries (not just the 'axis of evil' ones you love to hate) find the concept of American liberty confusing and frightening.

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abacacus
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15 Apr 2013, 6:10 pm

Tequila wrote:

visagrunt wrote:

Of course they can. What a moronic claim.

The same can be said of a great many religions.

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thomas81
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15 Apr 2013, 6:13 pm

abacacus wrote:

Tequila wrote:

visagrunt wrote:

Of course they can. What a moronic claim.

The same can be said of a great many religions.

This. When one isn't able to say the problem is institutionalised religion and draw a line under that. We can say they are being an advocate of sectarianism.

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Kraichgauer
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15 Apr 2013, 10:58 pm

Imagine if we had blasphemy laws here in America. Then imagine how the prisons would really be overcrowded - with half the county's population.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

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