Çiğdem Bayraktar Ör appeared before the judge: "An ironic case"

Secularism Council member and our newspaper writer Dr. was previously arrested on the charge of "insulting the President" on the grounds of his social media posts. This time, Çiğdem Bayraktar Ör appeared before the judge on the charge of "Degrading State Institutions" over the same post.

Bayraktar Ör, who made his defense in the case heard today morning at the Istanbul Anatolian Courthouse 81st Criminal Court of First Instance, rejected the accusations, emphasizing that as someone who wrote the book "How Happy is the One Who Says I Am a Turk", he would give his life for his country and that it was out of the question for him to humiliate his state and nation.

After the defense of Bayraktar Ör and his lawyers, the court announced an interim decision and postponed the hearing to 11 November 2026 for the prosecutor to give his opinion.

'AN IRONIC CASE'

Speaking to our newspaper after the hearing, Çiğdem Bayraktar Ör said, "I find it ironic that someone like me, who is sincerely and proudly devoted to my homeland, is faced with such an accusation. I listened with a bitter smile as I was seen as the subject of such an accusation."

Bayraktar Ör, as a political scientist and historian, said that he used his right to criticize and that he did this for the future of his country.