A new low for freedom of speech in Turkey

Turkey has a pretty spotty record on freedom of speech, with prosecutions brought against people for mentioning the Armenian genocide, publishing political material in Kurdish, and showing "the traditional Kurdish region" on a map - but this week they have reached a new low. Kurdish politician Ahmet Turk has been jailed for six months on a charge of "supporting a criminal" for a speech he made in which he talked about jailed Kurdistan Workers Party leader Abdullah Ocalan. His crime? He called Ocalan "Mr". This was deemed to imply respect, and hence support - which given that Ocalan advocates peaceful Kurdish separatism, is practically treason in nationalist Turkey.

No matter what you think of Ocalan or his cause, this is ridiculous. Calling someone "Mr" - or conversely, failing to insult them every time you mention them - should not be any sort of crime. If Turkish law allows this, then the law has to go.