Hate Speech – Yeniakit Publisher

Identification

Date 02/05/2026
Location Online Samsun Turkey
Platform Newspaper (Online, Printed) | Yeni Akit

Perpetrator

Name Yeniakit Publisher
Profession Private Institution
Position According to a report prepared by the Hrant Dink Foundation, it is the national newspaper in Türkiye where hate speech is most frequently encountered.
Organization Yeni Akit is said to be linked to islamism, pan-Islamism, fundamentalism, reactionism, erdoğanism, social conservatism, crypto-fascism, homophobia, anti-feminism, anti-semitism, anti-communism

Target Group

Targeted Group Gülen Movement
Description The Gülen Movement is a civil society movement that operates in the fields of education, dialogue, and humanitarian aid, rejects violence, and is based on voluntary participation. The movement places universal values such as respect for human rights, the rule of law, pluralism, and peaceful coexistence at its core, and regards religious, cultural, and social diversity as a source of richness.
Targeted Individuals (If any)

Content of the incident

Summary aa
Quotation “2 more FETÖ members have been handed over to where they belong [prison].”
Context A news report published by Yeni Akit on February 5, 2026, stated that two individuals with finalized prison sentences for membership in “FETÖ” were apprehended in the Çarşamba and Bafra districts of Samsun and sent to prison. The report labeled the individuals as “FETÖ members” and used the phrase “delivered to where they belong.
Language of expression Turkish
Source Link https://www.yeniakit.com.tr/haber/2-fetocu-daha-ait-olduklari-yere-teslim-edildi-1981370.html
Images HS-202602-001/HS-202602-001.Source_Screenshot.115132.jpg

Why this case qualifies as hate speech?

Context Description A news report published by Yeni Akit on February 5, 2026, stated that two individuals with finalized prison sentences for membership in “FETÖ” were apprehended in the Çarşamba and Bafra districts of Samsun and sent to prison. The report labeled the individuals as “FETÖ members” and used the phrase “delivered to where they belong.
Contextual Analysis The term “FETÖ” is a politically charged label that was produced and widely disseminated through state discourse in Turkey after 2016, without a clearly defined legal basis. By grouping all individuals and entities associated with the Gülen Movement under a single, homogeneous category of “terrorism,” the term eliminates the principle of individual criminal responsibility and creates a framework of collective guilt. From the perspective of international human rights law, the criminalization of a community on the basis of alleged ideological or religious affiliation, without individualized judicial determination, is incompatible with the presumption of innocence, freedom of expression, and the prohibition of discrimination. In this context, the term “FETÖ” functions not merely as a descriptive label, but as a stigmatizing and targeting form of rhetoric. The systematic use of the term in media, political, and public discourse contributes to portraying individuals associated with the Gülen Movement as security threats, facilitates their dehumanization, and exposes them to social hostility. For these reasons, when used irrespective of context, the term “FETÖ” constitutes a slur that meets the criteria of hate speech and discriminatory language.

Classification

Targeted Characteristic Ideological views
Stereotyping true
Insult false
Dehumanization false
Threat true
Criminalization true
Call For Violence false
Discriminatory Policy true

Impact

Stigmatization true
Normalization true
Social Exclusion true
Harassment Risk false
Chilling Effect true
Hostile Environment false
Intergenerational Harm true