Notably, Article 216 of the Penal Code (Provoking the Public to Hatred, Hostility, Degrading) “should not be used to punish harsh criticism against government policies” (par. 124). Due to its excessive use, Article 229 (Insulting the President of the Republic) should be completely repealed (par. 126). Article 301 (Degrading the Turkish Nation, the Turkish Republic, the Organs and Institutions of the State) should be amended to avoid the problem of vague wording (par. 127). Article 314 should be interpreted narrowly and in Article 220 (Establishing organisations for the purpose of committing crime) the clause “although he is not a member of that organisation, shall also be sentenced for the offence of being a member of that organisation”) should be removed. The Opinion also came to the conclusion that the practice of the courts that applied these provisions did not sufficiently mitigate these problems.