Turkey doctor gets 15 months' jail for revealing pollution cancer risk

ISTANBUL: A Turkish scientist was sentenced to 15 months in prison on Thursday for revealing the cancer risks posed by toxic pollution in western Turkey.

The court in Istanbul found Dr Bulent Sik guilty of"disclosing classified information" to newspaper Cumhuriyet last year.He published the results of a study carried out with other scientists for the Ministry of Health between 2011 and 2015 that linked the presence of toxicity in soil, water and food to high rates of cancer in several western provinces.

He approached the press after realising that the government was not acting on the study's findings, according to Amnesty International. "Rather than suppressing the findings and prosecuting Dr Sik, the Ministry of Health and other relevant authorities should be taking the necessary urgent action to tackle this environmental pollution and protect public health," said Amnesty's Turkey campaigner Milena Buyum ahead of the verdict.Advertisement

Dr Sik had faced up to 12 years in prison, but the court found him not guilty of"obtaining classified information".

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Malaysian police arrest 15 over links to Islamic StateKUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has arrested 15 people, mostly foreigners from neighbouring Indonesia, on suspicion of having links with the Islamic State ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Artist displays 440 pairs of high heels for women murdered in Turkey in 2018Turkish artist Vahit Tuna has mounted 440 pairs of high heels on the facade of a building on a busy Istanbul street, to symbolise the number of ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Imran Khan says Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan launching TV channel to fight ‘Islamophobia’KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 — Malaysia, Pakistan and Turkey are cooperating for a television channel to address wrong views of Islam, as part of a larger campaign against Islamophobia, Imran Khan...
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

Father of four gets 44 months’ jail, nine strokes of the cane for repeatedly molesting daughter
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Unequal HIV prevention pill use puts minority men at higher risk(Reuters Health) - Fewer minority men who are at risk for HIV take a prevention pill or discuss it with their doctors, U.S. researchers say. ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Armed robber who fled court during hearing gets 11.5 years' jailSINGAPORE: A man who was arrested a day after fleeing the court during proceedings was jailed for 11-and-a-half years on Thursday (Sep 26). ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »