Merve Buyuksarac Convicted Of Insulting Turkish Presdent
Merve Buyuksarac has been convited of inuslting the president. A Turkish court has convicted the former Miss Turkey of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, giving her a 14-month suspended prison sentence.
Merve Buyuksarac, 27, was found guilty of insulting a public official for postings she made on social media. She denied insulting Mr Erdogan.
Her lawyer says he will file a formal objection to the verdict and take the case to a higher court.
“I shared it because I found it funny. I had no intention to insult President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,” Ms Buyuksarac was quoted as saying at the time.
Rights groups have criticised Turkey for backtracking on freedom of speech.
Almost 2,000 people, including celebrities and schoolchildren, have been prosecuted in Turkey for insulting the president since he came to office in 2014, under a previously little-used law.
Foreign leaders and international observers have raised concern over deteriorating freedoms in the country, where critical voices in the media and politics have been targeted by a wave of new laws and arrests cracking down on dissent.
