U.S. concerned about judicial harassment after Turkish pop star's arrest
By Reuters Staff
WASHINGTON/ISTANBUL (Reuters) -The United States said it remained concerned about Turkey’s censorship of free speech, and women’s groups protested in Istanbul on Saturday, after the arrest of pop star Gulsen over a past quip she made about religious schools.
Turkish pop star Gulsen performs during a concert in Aydin, Turkey March 27, 2022.
The singer-songwriter was jailed on Thursday pending trial on a charge of incitement to hatred after a video of her on-stage remark in April was broadcast by a pro-government media outlet.
While several state ministers condemned Gulsen’s words, her arrest drew a fierce response from critics who see President Tayyip Erdogan’s government as bent on punishing those who oppose its conservative views.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson said it remains concerned about widespread efforts in Turkey to restrict expression via censorship and judicial harassment following Gulsen’s detention
Protesters in Istanbul criticised what they called inconsistency between the judiciary’s inaction towards violence against women and the artist’s speedy investigation and arrest. Many say Gulsen was targeted for her liberal views and support for LGBT+ rights.
“Hundreds of women would be alive today if men who assaulted other women were captured as fast as Gulsen was,” organizers of the Istanbul protest told demonstrators through a loudspeaker.
Her arrest is the latest injustice against “women who don’t fit the mold,” or are not “the type of woman the government wants,” they said
In the video of her performance in April, Gulsen refers to a musician in her band and says in a light-hearted manner: “He studied at an Imam Hatip (school) previously. That’s where his perversion comes from.”
Erdogan, whose Islamist-rooted party first came to power two decades ago, himself studied at one of Turkey’s first Imam Hatip schools, which were founded by the state to educate young men to be imams and preachers but have since exploded in number.
Gulsen on Thursday apologised to anyone offended by her remarks, saying they were seized upon by some who want to polarise society.
Reporting by Pete Schroeder in Washington and Azra Ceylan in Istanbul; Writing by Jonathan Spicer; Editing by Daniel Wallis, William Maclean
Turkish pop star jailed over joke about religious schools
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – Turkish singer and songwriter Gulsen was arrested on Thursday on charges of “inciting hatred and enmity” for a joke she made at an Istanbul concert in April, sparking outrage on social media.
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish pop star Gulsen has been arrested on charges of “inciting hatred and enmity” over a joke she made about Turkey’s religious schools, the country’s state-run news agency reported.
The 46-year-old singer and songwriter, whose full name is Gulsen Colakoglu, was taken away for questioning from her home in Istanbul and was formally arrested late on Thursday before being taken to a prison pending her trial.
The arrest sparked outrage on social media. Government critics said the move was an effort by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to consolidate his religious and conservative support base ahead of elections in 10 months’ time.
The charges were based on a joke Gulsen made during a concert in Istanbul back in April when she quipped that one of her musicians’ “perversion” stemmed from the fact that he went to a religious school. A video of the singer making the comments began circulating on social media recently, with a hashtag calling for her arrest.
Gulsen — who had already been the target of Islamic circles for her revealing stage outfits — issued an apology for the offense caused but said her comments were seized on by those wanting to deepen polarization in the country.
During her questioning, Gulsen rejected accusations that she incited hatred and enmity, telling court authorities that she had “endless respect for the values and sensitivities of my country,” the state-run Anadolu Agency reported.
A request that she be released from custody pending the outcome of a trial was rejected.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of Turkey’s main opposition party called on Turkey’s judges and prosecutors to release Gulsen.
“Don’t betray the law and justice; release the artist now!” he wrote on Twitter.
The spokesman for Erdogan ruling party, Omer Celik, appeared however, to defend the decision to arrest the singer, saying “inciting hatred is not an art form.”
“Targeting a segment of society with the allegation of “perversion” and trying to polarize Turkey is a hate crime and a disgrace to humanity,” Celik tweeted.
Erdogan and many members of his Islam-based ruling party are graduates of religious schools, which were originally established to train imams. The number of religious schools has increased under Erdogan, who has promised to raise a “pious generation.”
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