A/55/280/Add.1
to 1 year and shall be fined…. If this offence is
committed by using force, threat or by
debasement, the perpetrators shall be punished by
imprisonment for 1 to 2 years and shall be
fined…. Whoever debases God, religions, the
prophets or the holy books, or whoever
condemns, derides or insults someone for not
fulfilling his religious duties shall be imprisoned
for six months to 1 year and shall be fined…. If
the felony in paragraph 3 above is committed via
the media, the penalty shall be doubled. In case of
the incitement by media to the felony stated in
article 1, the same punishment shall be given.
Article 176. Whoever pulls down or impairs or
damages in any way items in temples, or uses
force against or insults spiritual officials, with the
intention of debasing any religion, shall be
punished by imprisonment for 1 to 2 years and
shall be fined…. When a felony is committed
during or in connection with the performance of
duty by spiritual officials, the punishment
prescribed by law for that the felony shall be
increased by one sixth.
Article 177. Whoever impairs monuments or
similar works in temples or engravings in
cemeteries, or damages tombs, shall be punished
by imprisonment for 1 to 3 years and shall be
fined…. Whoever defiles any of the abovementioned objects shall be punished for three
months to 1 year and fined…
Article 178. Whoever, with the intent of
defamation or any other illegal intent, insults or
takes partially or entirely the corpse or bones of a
person shall be punished by imprisonment for 1
to 3 years and shall be fined…. Whoever,
exclusive of the above acts, removes a whole
corpse or a part of it, or disinters a dead body or
its bones without obtaining official permission
shall be imprisoned for two to six months and
fined…. When this crime is committed via
officials of a cemetery or graveyard or by persons
to whom corpses or bones are delivered, the
punishment prescribed by law shall be doubled.
2. Provisions of civil law
27. The Minister of Justice explained that the Turkish
Civil Code represents translation of the Swiss Civil
Code, and that this code, adopted in 1926, replaced
8
Islamic law in personal status matters of marriage,
divorce and inheritance and that it guaranteed the
principle of equality between men and women. He also
noted that draft legislation for a new Civil Code was
under study and that this would ensure that all
provisions are consistent with the principle of equality
between the sexes. He referred specifically to the
prohibition of polygamy and the introduction of civil
marriage (as a prior condition for any religious
marriage).
3. Supplementary jurisprudence
28. The Special Rapporteur was unable to obtain all
of the legislation dealing directly or indirectly with
freedom of religion and belief. Because of this,
supplementary information provided after the visit,
both by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and by nongovernmental sources, will be reviewed in this report,
in order to give as complete a picture as possible of the
legal situation.
(a) Indications and comments provided by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Legislation on unused places of worship and on
lands and buildings belonging to national
religious minorities/conditions for minorities to
establish schools, churches, associations and
foundations
29. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has explained
that lands and buildings belonging to national religious
minorities may be sold, rented or used for another
purpose, at the decision of the respective boards of
directors, provided such decisions are consistent with
legislation governing foundations. If the national
religious community that is the beneficiary of the
foundation ceases to exist, or if the foundation, despite
warnings by the authorities concerned, does not have
the means to constitute a board of directors, Law No.
2762 on foundations and provides that the management
of these properties shall be transferred to the General
Directorate of Foundations, which will be responsible
for maintaining the property, while allowing visits to
places of worship that are part of such property.
Moreover, according to the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, in cases where the management of a
foundation has changed hands in this way and where,
within five years after that decision, the foundation
succeeds in electing a new Board of Directors, it may
have its status restored by fulfilling the necessary