This is how it works. People donate books, and other people buy these books for TL 2 each (a very good price indeed). All of the proceeds go to the protection of street animals on the peninsula. In the ever-popular food corner, one can find fig jam and chutney available to purchase. The event was held in Bitez. I came to know about the event just by chance and met David, who is the editor of the Bodrum Bulletin. It was such a lovely day out.
While watching all these people having fun and enjoying their day, I thought about the life of an expat in Turkey, which is sometimes absolutely horrible. Can you imagine receiving a small letter from a court with an order to appear before a criminal court, and there you learn that you are convicted of electricity theft? This would be horrible enough to spoil a nice holiday.
I received an e-mail from a dear reader that states: “Dear Berk, just a little confusion regarding your article in Today's Zaman this morning. On the internet it shows the article as ‘Are you an electricity thief?' but in the newspaper the article is ‘Can a non-national become a director of a Turkish limited company?' When will the electricity article be published please? All British people follow your articles closely.”
I wrote this article almost two years ago, and in the meantime, no major changes have been made to this topic. However, for people who have not read that article and due to the importance of the matter, I will be writing about the same topic again.
It is likely that some of you would not even be able to find where the fuse box is, and only a very few of you might have technical knowledge on how to obtain electricity illegally. I am almost sure that none of you would be interested in stealing electricity and getting yourself in trouble in Turkey. Then how can you become an electricity thief without even knowing how to do so? I will tell you how: Using unregistered electricity is considered theft under Turkish law, and if you are, intentionally or unintentionally, using unregistered electricity or using electricity in an illegal way (such as slowing down the meter by wiring), you will be convicted as an “electric thief.” Previously, I have mentioned that there would be several complications of having a house without a habitation certificate. I also mentioned that it is (somehow) possible for some people to register for electricity and water without having a habitation certificate. In this case, the residents may be in big trouble if they are obtaining electricity illegally. In most of these cases, the illegal use of electricity is detected by not having a habitation certificate. There are also some rare cases where the workmen stop the electric meter for some reason, but the person still gets electricity, and the person unintentionally keeps getting electricity without noticing that the meter is not running. And when officers check the meter and find out that it isn't working, they report the matter to the authorities, and the person finds himself or herself before the court. One of my friend's 86-year-old grandmother went to court for electricity theft because a stupid electrician did not connect the wires properly, leaving one of the meters out of order. It was very difficult to convince the judge that she would not be able to think about stealing electricity. Now, please go and check whether your meter is running properly.
NOTE: Berk Çektir is a licensed attorney at law and available to answer questions on the legal aspects of living in Turkey. Send enquiries to b.cektir@todayszaman.com. The names of the readers are disclosed only upon written approval of the sender. DISCLAIMER: The information provided here is intended to give basic legal information. You should get legal assistance from a licensed attorney at law while conducting legal transactions and not just rely on the information in this corner.
