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Turkish Elections: Opposition takes courage

October 31, 2015

Criticizing President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is risky in Turkey. Kadir Yavaş, a student, experienced that personally when he was given a suspended sentence for "insulting" the president. But Yavaş refuses to be silenced.

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Türkei Polizei stürmt regierungskritischen Fernsehsender
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer

Reporter - Turkish Elections: Opposition takes courage

Kadir Yavaş is a politically active university student. A few weeks ago he was given an 11-month suspended sentence for "insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan" in a critical speech. If he criticizes the president again during that time, he faces imprisonment. Despite the great risk of being convicted again, he's not giving up. He and a group of other students are continuing to fight for a freer, more democratic Turkey. Many people in his home village don't understand him: his parents worry about him, and many conservative villagers think the young people's protests are misguided and dangerous. Will Yavaş keep to the terms of his probation and forgo criticizing Erdogan?

Turkey's Opposition - Enemy of the State on Probation Report by Gunnar Köhne and Kristina Karasu.