A judge in the Turkish city of Erzurum has mandated a woman accused of collaborating with the Kurdistan Workers' Party to post a picture of the national flag on her social media pages for an entire month. Turkish authorities consider this party a terrorist organization and prohibit its activities within the republic. The newspaper "Cumhuriyet" reported that the judge's decision has sparked intense debate among lawyers and legal experts regarding its legality.
The newspaper stated that a criminal case was opened against the woman for promoting a banned organization and suspected of having connections to it, after she posted a picture of the PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, who is serving a life sentence for separatist activities, on her Facebook account. According to Turkish criminal law, the woman faces a potential prison sentence of up to five years.
In a related move, the judge overseeing the case ordered the woman's release after she pledged not to leave and instructed her to report to the police station three times a week, as well as to post the Turkish national flag on her social media for a month. The Diyarbakır Bar Association in southeastern Turkey described this decision as a violation of the law and filed a complaint with the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors in Turkey, demanding accountability for the judge.
According to law professor Devrim Çongar from Ankara University, the judge does not have the authority to issue such a ruling. The newspaper quoted this legal expert, stating that "the decision is a flagrant violation of the law and a demonstration of the judge's professional negligence." Meanwhile, the Erzurum public prosecutor's office has appealed the judge's decision, requesting a reconsideration.
