A Turkish man is on trial and could face jail time for sharing a meme picture online that compared President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with the "Lord of the Rings" character Gollum.
Bilgin Ciftci, a doctor, lost his job at the Public Health Institution of Turkey in October after he shared the side by side pictures on Facebook,
The Washington Post reported. In Turkey, insulting the head of state is punishable by up to two years in prison.
Upon being dragged into court, Ciftci insisted that the pictures were not at all meant to be insulting, as Gollum is a hero. Others, however, say that the comparison is unflattering.
The judge presiding over the trial admitted that he hadn't seen all of the "Lord of the Rings" and "Hobbit" movies, and therefore called for expert opinion to help decide the case.
Therefore, two academics, two behavioral scientists or psychologists, and a media expert have been called to testify on whether Gollum and any comparison to him is good or bad. The panel will have a few months to review the case evidence before the court reconvenes in February.
Ciftci's lawyer, Hicran Danisman, said that the case has come down to "a case of saving the pride of Gollum."
According to the BBC, between August 2014 and March 2015, 236 Turkish people have been investigated for "insulting the head of state." A total of 105 have been indicted, and eight formally arrested. Similarly, Reporters Without Borders places Turkey 149th of 180 countries in its press freedom index.
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