Turkey's top court rules Özgür Özel's free speech violated in Fuat Oktay case

September 19, 2026 at 01:25 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

Turkey's Constitutional Court ruled that opposition leader Özgür Özel's freedom of expression was violated in a defamation case brought by former Vice President Fuat Oktay. The court ordered 50,000 lira in non-pecuniary damages for Özel and sent the case back for retrial. The ruling overturns a lower court decision that had ordered Özel to pay 10,000 lira to Oktay.

Key Facts

Turkey's Constitutional Court ruled that Özgür Özel's freedom of expression was violated in the case brought by Fuat Oktay.
The court awarded Özel 50,000 Turkish lira in non-pecuniary damages.
The case was sent back to Ankara 25th Civil Court of First Instance for retrial.
A regional appeals court had previously ordered Özel to pay 10,000 lira to Oktay.

The Ruling

Turkey's Constitutional Court found that Özgür Özel's freedom of expression was violated in the defamation case filed by Fuat Oktay. The court ordered 50,000 lira in non-pecuniary damages for Özel. It also sent the case back to Ankara 25th Civil Court of First Instance for retrial to eliminate the consequences of the violation.

Background of the Case

Özel made the statements at a press conference in the Turkish Grand National Assembly on October 14 and 15, 2020. He accused Oktay of committing crimes at YİMPAŞ and Türk Telekom, saying Oktay had squandered taxpayers' money to the Hariri family. Oktay filed a lawsuit seeking 150,000 lira in non-pecuniary damages. A regional appeals court ruled that Özel must pay 10,000 lira to Oktay.

Court's Reasoning

The Constitutional Court stated that Özel's remarks were made on a matter of public interest and were not a wholly arbitrary personal attack. It noted that the lower courts failed to assess the evidence Özel presented regarding allegations of corruption at the company where Oktay had served on the board. The court concluded that no fair balance was struck between Özel's freedom of expression and Oktay's right to protection of honor and reputation.