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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is suing a German comedian for reciting a satirical poem about him on German television that slammed Turkey’s crackdown on the press and its Kurdish population. The move could complicate German efforts to pay Turkey to stop the flow of refugees into Europe, making it more difficult turn a blind eye to Ankara’s domestic policies.
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Prosecutors said Tuesday that Erdogan's complaint against Jan Boehmermann would be examined as part of a pending procedure. Boehmermann is the host of the late night show, "Neo Magazin Royale," on the public ZDF channel.
Turkey had already begun investigating Boehmermann on suspicion of the crime of "offending foreign states' organs and representatives" after more than 20 people filed complaints. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus called the poem “a crime against humanity."
The Turkish government earlier asked Germany to prosecute the TV personality, who argues that his episode mocking Erdogan was an exercise in free speech and press freedom.
In a program broadcast on March 31, Boehmermann recited a poem about Erdogan that contained crude sexual references and accusations that Erdogan repressed minorities and mistreated Kurds and Christians.
Before reading it, Boehmermann referred to a satirical song broadcast on NDR television that had mocked Erdogan for his authoritarian treatment of journalists. That show led Turkey to call in Germany's envoy to provide an explanation, although Germany rejected Turkish protests.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesperson said Monday that Berlin was examining Erdogan’s formal request to prosecute Boehmermann. A decision will be made in the next few days.
Germany is home to more than 3 million citizens with Turkish heritage and at least 1.5 million Turkish citizens. Erdogan has significant support among the Turkish population in the western European country.
As a result of increasing threats against him by Erdogan supporters, Boehmermann has been placed under police protection and has cancelled the next episode of his show.
Critics say prosecuting the comedian could expose how Germany is compromising its own stated values in order to not upset Erdogan, with Turkey seen by European leaders as their best hope for stemming the influx of refugees.
"If the government were to support the (Turkish) move, there would be a huge backlash domestically," Wolfgang Kubicki, senior member of Germany's business-friendly FDP party, told NDR radio.
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He added that in his opinion as a trained lawyer, the poem was "distasteful" but within the limits of artistic freedom.
In a phone conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Merkel described the poem as "deliberately offensive."
Merkel was the main driver behind the recently approved European Union-Turkey agreement that has seen refugees being deported from Greece back to Turkey in return for Ankara receiving billions of dollars in aid and visa-free access for its citizens to the EU.
Human rights organizations have slammed the deal as inhumane and a violation of refugees' human rights. The United Nations has likewise said the deal violates international human rights laws and asylum agreements.
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