Turkish LGBT Activist from Mersin Acquitted on Appeal in "Insulting the President" Case

The Adana Regional Court of Appeals has acquitted LGBT activist and human rights defender Aytok Zozan Viyan, who had previously been convicted by a court in Mersin under Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code — “insulting the president.”

The criminal case stemmed from two posts on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), published in late 2024. In the first post (October 30, 2024), Viyan wrote: “The president of the country I live in considers me an enemy, and I am proud of suffering from phobias!” The second post (November 20, 2024) used the word “dictator” in the context of criticizing the government’s policy of appointing state trustees to local administrations.

According to bianet , the 26th Criminal Court of First Instance in Mersin sentenced Viyan to 1 year and 2 months in prison. The court refused to apply any sentence reduction or a suspended sentence, citing Viyan’s “negative personality traits.” Viyan and their attorney argued that the posts constituted political criticism protected by freedom of expression.

The Second Criminal Division of the Adana Regional Court of Appeals overturned the conviction and acquitted Viyan, finding that the necessary legal elements for the charge of “insulting the president” had not been established. The state was ordered to pay Viyan 30,000 Turkish liras in legal fees.

Viyan stated that the case began in January 2024, when they became the target of an online doxxing campaign in which anonymous users published their personal data, contact information, and family details.