HURRIYET DAILY NEWS
An official from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) sparked controversy after he called for the “annihilation of atheists” on his Twitter account.
Mahmut Macit, a senior member of AKP’s Ankara provincial board and keen user of social media, flared up on May 21 about insults against believers via Twitter. “My blood boils when spineless psychopaths pretending to be atheists swear at my religion. These people, who have been raped, should be annihilated,” Macit wrote in one tweet. He also argued that “insulting Islam could not be considered freedom of expression.”
His remarks came as renowned Turkish-Armenian linguist and former columnist Sevan Ni?anyan was condemned to 13 months in prison for alleged blasphemy in a blog comment.
They also added more fuel to Turkey’s culture wars, reignited by a bill currently debated in the Turkish Parliament that foresees new restrictions on the sale and consumption of alcohol.
Hurriyet Daily News for more
(Thanks to Harsh Kapoor of SACW)