Turkey: rapper Ezhel arrested for defying cannabis censorship

In Turkey, anti-cannabis laws are tough and cannabis culture is taboo. Government and social censorship are the order of the day, and consumers prefer to keep a low profile for fear of the consequences. This is not the case for Ezhel, a 28-year-old Turkish rapper, who makes no secret of it and talks openly about his cannabis consumption in his lyrics. He escaped censorship by releasing his album Müptezhel (which means stoner in slang) via Spotify in 2017. Since then, he has been convicted several times of incitement to violence. use of drugs and is currently on trial.

Cracking down on cannabis in Turkey

However, it is not uncommon use cannabis in Turkey, especially among young middle-class urbanites. What's more, Islam places no restrictions on this substance, unlike alcohol. Yet the Islamic party currently governing the country has no intention of relaxing anti-drug laws. In 2014, it even passed the maximum prison sentence for drug possession to five years instead of two. Production of cannabis for research purposes has been legal since 2016 but strictly regulated and subject to prior approval by the Ministry of Livestock and Agriculture.

At the same time, in 2017, repression increased: the Minister of the Interior declared that cannabis seizures by the police had increased by 217% compared to 2016. He added that «law enforcement should treat drug dealers like terrorists» or «that it was their duty to break their legs when they saw drug dealers near schools.

In May 2018, the head of the Turkish narcotics squad, İbrahim Seydioğulları, announced a further tightening of the crackdown. In particular, he declared that the simple act of sharing a photo on social networks or wearing any item of clothing, even just a pin, with a cannabis symbol was a crime punishable by 2 to 5 years' imprisonment in accordance with the provisions of the penal code.

The Ezhel case

The rapper's lyrics deal with life under an authoritarian regime, social polarization, the effects of politics on the lives of citizens, as well as less political themes such as love and sex, but always from the point of view of the "man". stoner. The political aspect is quite subtle, but the claim that he uses cannabis is by no means veiled. Interviewed by Cannabis Wire, he declares: «Rap is about describing your life and your experiences, about self-expression. Cannabis is part of my life, and that's the only reason I talk about it in my songs, among other things».

Last May, a few days after İbrahim Seydioğulları's statement and following an anonymous complaint to the Prime Minister's communications center, he was arrested for incitement and promotion of cannabis. He faces a potential sentence of five to ten years in prison for his songs and Instagram posts in which he appears with a cannabis leaf. He is in prison awaiting trial, but his arrest and detention provoked a strong reaction on social networks, particularly on Twitter, where the hashtag #FreeEzhel became one of the most popular for several days. Amnesty International has even launched a campaign for his release.

The case led the government to discuss the compatibility of its anti-drug laws with the freedom of expression. Ezhel was acquitted and released after a month in prison, the judge having ruled that the charges against him should be seen in the context of his artistic creation. But three weeks after his release, Ezhel received another warning from the authorities and, in July, he was again convicted of inciting and promoting drug use.

He decided to plead not guilty at his first hearing on November 6, stating: «I have absolutely no intention of promoting anything harmful to society. My productions are works of art. I deny the accusation». The next hearing will be held in February 2019.