Kutlular was sentenced to two years, one day in jail for publicly blaming the military for an earthquake that resulted in severe damage in northwestern Turkey and killed approximately 20,000 people in August 1999. He was found guilty of “openly inciting enmity and hatred by observing social, racial and religious differences” in accordance with Article 312 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) for telling a religious gathering that the quake was a punishment sent by God for the staunchly secular military’s crackdown on religious Muslims and a ban on wearing the headscarf in schools.
The publisher served 276 days in prison and appealed to the European Court of Human Rights against the sentence. The court ordered Turkey to pay Kutlular 5,000 euros in damages for violating Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which provides for freedom of expression. The Ankara 11th High Criminal Court ruled on Tuesday that the publisher be acquitted of all charges against him.
