More than half of people in Turkey say they have faced legal action for expressing their views, according to a recent survey that points to widespread self-censorship and eroded confidence in freedom of expression in the country.
The findings point to a self-censorship that has seeped into everyday life, with more than four in five respondents saying they change how they speak during phone calls out of fear of surveillance, while nearly half said they think several times before making political posts online.
The survey, conducted online by Saha Araştırmaları Merkezi between March 23 and April 10, polled 760 people, around 68 percent of whom had at least a university degree.
The effects extend beyond those directly targeted: 90.5 percent of respondents said someone they know had faced legal sanctions over their opinions.
Nearly seven in 10 respondents (69.7 percent) said criticizing the state is “definitely not safe,” with the statement “People in Turkey can freely express their thoughts” scoring just 1.6 out of 5.
Legal repercussions were the most commonly cited driver of self-censorship, named by a quarter of respondents, followed by fear of job loss (20.1 percent) and concerns about threats from formal or informal groups (18.8 percent).
Turkish authorities have increasingly used laws criminalizing insulting public officials and spreading disinformation and terrorist propaganda to prosecute opposition politicians, journalists and human rights defenders.
One of the sharpest increases has been in cases involving charges of insulting the president or state institutions. In 2014, when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was first elected president, just 132 people were prosecuted on such charges. Since Turkey adopted an executive presidential system of governance in 2018, that number has grown sharply, reaching 44,717 in 2020 and 59,780 in 2025.
International organizations and human rights groups, including the Council of Europe (CoE), the European Union and Amnesty International, have repeatedly raised concerns over restrictions on freedom of expression as well as limits on associations in Turkey.
