Constitutional Court Sets Precedents On Social Media Posts

The Turkish Constitutional Court recently handed down certain decisions related to social media posts which touch on different aspects of the rights and freedoms guaranteed under the Turkish Constitution (Decisions numbered 2018/12551 and 2020/13412 published on the Official Gazette of February 23, 2021 and decision numbered 2017/31971 published on the Official Gazette of February 25, 2021).

(i) Decision numbered 2018/12551

This decision concerns the applicant's claims on violation of his freedom of expression due to a judicial fine imposed for criticizing a politic figure through a comment posted on Facebook. According to the decision, the plaintiff, who was an active political figure at the time of the applicant's comment, posted a text on his Facebook page in tribute to the Republic of Turkey's seventh president, Kenan Evren at the anniversary of his death. The applicant commented on this post by criticizing the plaintiff. Eventually, the applicant was