Wednesday, April 30, 2008

The Associated Press: Turkey's parliament softens law restricting free speech

"Turkey's parliament softens law restricting free speech

By C. ONUR ANT – 10 hours ago

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) — Turkey's parliament approved a government-backed proposal Wednesday to soften a law restricting free speech that has been used to prosecute intellectuals and dissidents.

The legislators voted 250-65 in favor of amending that section of Turkey's penal code, under which thousands of people have been prosecuted and 745 convicted since 2003, including Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk."

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