Turkish law contains no criminal provision dealing specifically with cartoons. For the purposes of insult a cartoon is subject to the same provisions as any other form of expression. But the nature of the form — exaggeration, analogy and irony — bears directly on the assessment.
A cartoon is a “work” under the Press Law
Article 2(ı) of Law No. 5187 expressly names cartoons in defining the author of a work: “the person who writes or translates the writing or news constituting the content of a periodical or non-periodical publication, or who makes the picture or cartoon, or who records or edits visual or audio content.”
Two consequences follow: the cartoonist is an author of the work, so under Article 11 of Law No. 5187 liability in periodicals rests with them as a rule; and they enjoy the source protection guarantee in Article 12.
Which provisions apply
| Provision | Content | Application to cartoons |
|---|---|---|
| Criminal Code, Art. 125/1 | Attributing a concrete act or fact, or reviling | Where the drawing contains a concrete attribution of an offence or an element of reviling |
| Criminal Code, Art. 125/4 | Commission in public | A published cartoon carries publicity |
| Criminal Code, Art. 126 | Where no doubt can arise even without the name being stated | Where the person is recognisable from the drawing, no name is required |
| Criminal Code, Art. 218 | Expressions of opinion made for the purpose of criticism are not an offence | The principal defence for a cartoon |
| Criminal Code, Art. 130 | Insulting the memory of a deceased person | Drawings concerning those who have died |
Why the form sits close to value judgment
One of the two acts constituting insult is attributing a concrete act or fact. A cartoon by its nature rests on exaggeration and analogy; the reader receives the drawing not as a statement of fact but as comment. That brings the form, as a rule, into the field of value judgment.
The last sentence of Article 218 then engages: “However, expressions of opinion that do not exceed the limits of reporting and are made for the purpose of criticism shall not constitute an offence.”
No name is needed
Article 126 is particularly important for cartoons: “Even where the name of the victim is not expressly stated in the commission of the offence of insult, or the attribution is covertly passed over, if there is a situation in which no doubt can arise as to its character and its being directed at the person of the victim, both the name shall be deemed stated and the insult explained.”
If the person is recognisable from the drawing, the absence of a name affords no protection.
The right of reply side
Cartoons are also expressly mentioned in the context of the right of correction and reply. Article 14 of Law No. 5187: “Where the work giving rise to the correction and reply is a writing, picture or cartoon of fewer than twenty lines, the correction and reply may not exceed thirty lines.”
The length of a reply text sent in response to a cartoon is therefore capped by statute.
Personality rights and damages
Liability in damages can arise independently of criminal liability. Under Article 24/2 of the Civil Code every attack on personality rights is unlawful unless justified by consent, a superior private or public interest, or the exercise of a power conferred by law. Under Article 13 of Law No. 5187 the author of the work together with the owner of the publication and their representative, if any, are jointly and severally liable for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage — so cartoonist and publication are liable together.
Public officials and politicians
Cartoons most often target public officials and politicians. Two forces operate here at once: under Article 125/3(a) the lower limit for insulting a public official on account of their duty may not be less than one year, and under Article 131/1 that case does not depend on a complaint. Against that, in settled case law the latitude for criticism of public activity is treated as wider.
The limits of criticism are covered in the criticism guide and reply length in the reply length guide.