‘Friends’ of the West, Enemies of Press Freedom

Thursday, 29 December 2011

http://www.freemedia.at/home/singleview/article/friends-of-the-west-enemies-of-press-freedom.html

A Year-End Look at 10 Press Freedom Offender States on whose Strategic Support the West Depends

VIENNA, 28 Dec. 2011 – At the close of the year, the International Press Institute (IPI) takes a look at 10 states that have poor records on press freedom, but on whose strategic support the west depends. These ‘Friends’ of the West, Enemies of Press Freedom are listed in no particular order below.

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Turkey

Friend:

Relations between the west and Turkey – a NATO member since 1952 and still theoretically a candidate to join the European Union – have cooled in recent years, but U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta earlier this month said on a visit to Turkey that the country remains a “key ally”. Western powers have often turned to Turkey, which serves as a bridge between the west and the Muslim world, for help in supporting the transitions to democracy in Iraq, Egypt and Libya, and in confronting the regimes in Syria and Iran.

Press Freedom Enemy:

Turkey presented one of the worst press freedom pictures in Europe, with a judge from the European Court of Human Rights saying in November that the country had taken the lead among Council of Europe members in violations of freedom of expression, including press freedom.

Turkey: Court Acquits Journalist Who Interviewed Kurdish Separatist

http://www.eurasiareview.com/29122011-turkey-court-acquits-journalist-who-interviewed-kurdish-separatist/

Reporters Without Borders

December 29, 2011

Reporters Without Borders said Thursday it hailed journalist Ertugrul Mavioglu’s acquittal by an Istanbul court earlier today on a charge of “propaganda in support of a terrorist organization” for interviewing Murat Karayilan of the Union of Kurdistan Communities (KCK), which the authorities regard as the urban wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Responding to Turkey’s appalling press freedom record

http://www.cpj.org/blog/2011/12/responding-to-turkeys-appalling-press-freedom-reco.php

By Joel Simon/CPJ Executive Director

Hundreds of Turkish journalists march to protest detentions and demand reforms to media laws in Ankara on March 19, 2011. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would like to take credit for Turkey’s economic growth and increasing regional influence, but when challenged on his country’s abysmal  press freedom record he tends to blame others, including the media itself which, he says, exaggerates the problem.

But the facts speak for themselves, as I noted in a letter CPJ sent yesterday to the prime minister. In it, we condemned the recent raids that have rounded up at least 29 journalists and we criticized the government for the politicized legal process that has led to the imprisonment of dozens of other journalists across the country.

KCK arrests concern human rights defenders

http://turkey.setimes.com/en_GB/articles/ses/articles/features/departments/national/2011/12/23/feature-01

The most recent wave of arrests targeting journalists pushes the Kurdish issue into a tense, critical period.

By Alakbar Raufoglu for SES Türkiye — 23/12/11

Dozens of journalists representing pro-Kurdish media were rounded up in simultaneous police operations across Turkey on Tuesday (December 20th), accused of ties to the PKK by being active members of the “propaganda wing” in the larger Kurdish umbrella organisation, Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK).

Critics say KCK trials and arrest of journalists reveal just how much the country needs sweeping judicial reform. [Reuters]

36 more journalists arrested in Turkey, totaling 99 journalists in prison

[Compiled from Birgun, ANF and BIA news agencies. Previously the total number of journalists in prison was cited as 107, but it was changed to 99 after a press release by Turkey's Union of Journalists (TGS)] December 24, 2011

The AKP government continues to imprison the rights of the people.

Following the detentions within the scope of the so-called KCK operations on 20 December, 36 journalists have been remanded in custody by a vacation court for allegedly being “member of an illegal organization”. While being brought to court journalists shouted ¨This kingdom will come to an end.¨

After bearing testimony to the prosecutor at Istanbul Court for over 15 hours, 42 journalists were on 23 December evening referred to the vacation court with a demand of arrest. While six of them were released on 24 December morning on conditions of trial without arrest, 36 journalists were sent to prison once again despite the lack of any confirmed criminal evidence.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS FREEDOM MISSION TO TURKEY: REPORT

http://www.ifj.org/assets/docs/106/195/726b16a-59f86c3.pdf

Due to the severe situation for freedom of the media in Turkey, and as a part of its
ongoing work, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) invited other international
organisations to participate in a 22-24 November 2011 press freedom mission to
Turkey. The aim was to make clear to the Turkish government and politicians the view
of the international organisations, as well as to show support for the immediate release
of 63 Turkish journalists who appear to have been jailed because of their work.
On 22 November 2011, the trial of 10 detained Turkish journalists (Ahmet Şik, Nedim
Şener, Soner Yalçin, Bariş Pehlivan, Bariş Terkoğlu, Müyesser Yildiz, Doğan
Yurdakul, Yalçin Küçük, Sait Çakir and Coşkun Musluk), indicted for their alleged
support of terrorist organisations in the so-called “Ergenekon” case, was to start in
Istanbul.

You can download the rest of the report from the following link in pdf format: press_freedom_turkey_report

Freedom of expression, freedom of press

 

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/freedom-of-expression-freedom-of-press.aspx?pageID=449&nID=9755&NewsCatID=409

22.12.2011, Murat Yetkin, Hurriyet Daily News

Reacting to French Parliament’s initiative to ban saying that the 1915 killings of Armenians was not genocide, Turkish Foreign Minister said yesterday in his Libération piece that the French take was a violation of freedom of expression.

The French take is beset on a 2008 European Union framework decision. There are certain well defined caveats on freedom of expression when it comes to human life. For example, it is forbidden in Germany to praise the Holocaust in Germany and Europe under occupation during World War II and claim that it was not genocide against Jewish people; nearly 6 million Jews were systematically killed by the Nazis just because of being who they are, as ruled by the Nuremberg Trials after the war.

I am not going to get into the debate whether the 1915 massacres, for which I feel deeply sorrow and regret, are of the same kind as the Holocaust.

But I can debate that the poisonous competition in the French political atmosphere now puts all unlike matters in the same basket.

Therefore, Davutoğlu has a point when he approaches the issue on the basis of freedom of expression.

Freedom of expression and its twin sister freedom of press are under questioning in today’s Turkey too.

December 26, 2011: URGENT CALL OF SOLIDARITY FOR THE JOURNALIST PRISONERS IN TURKEY

Turkey currently holds more than 60 journalists in prison and the number goes up regularly. Last week, Turkish police detained more than 40 journalists, as part of a growing investigation against the Kurdistan Communities Union, KCK, an umbrella organization for Kurdish political movement.

At the same time, the second hearing of ODA TV case, which is the most symbolic case about freedom of press in Turkey, is approaching. This hearing will be held in Çağlayan Court House, in İstanbul on 26^th of December 2011. The 13 journalists including well-known investigative journalists Ahmet Şık and Nedim Şener have been in prison for nine months already because of the ODA TV case. All of these journalists have made critical news about Justice and Development Party (AKP), the ruling party in Turkey. These journalists are accused of crimes like being involved in a plot to overthrow the government, being member of a terrorist organisation, etc… There is no proof or evidence pertaining to these accusations yet!

Turkish journalists face judge in test of media freedom

By Yesim Comert and Gul Tuysuz, CNN

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/22/world/meast/turkey-journalists/index.html?iref=allsearch

November 23, 2011 — Updated 1218 GMT (2018 HKT)

Journalists and human right activists protest in front of the courthouse in Istanbul during the trial of several journalists.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• The government says the journalists have not been charged in connection with their jobs
• They are accused of being involved in a plot to overthrow the government
• The courtroom was packed with journalists, observers and families of the defendants

Istanbul (CNN) – Several journalists accused of being involved in an alleged plot to overthrow the Turkish government appeared in an Istanbul court on Tuesday for the first hearing in a trial that is seen as a test for media freedoms in Turkey.

Journalists in Police Custody – Crackdowns on Homes and Offices

http://bianet.org/english/freedom-of-expression/134901-journalists-in-police-custody—crackdowns-on-homes-and-offices

More than 25 journalists were taken into police custody on 21 December during crackdowns on offices of news agencies and newspapers in several cities. The raids and custodies are part of the “KCK operation”.

Istanbul – BİA News Center

21 December 2011, Wednesday

More than 25 journalists were taken into police custody in the course of operations against journalists in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Van, Adana and Diyarbakır on Tuesday morning (20 December). The crackdowns were part of the so-called KCK operation related to the Union of Kurdish Communities (KCK), the umbrella organization that includes the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

Rights groups condemn arrests of Turkish journalists

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/21/us-turkey-journalists-idUSTRE7BK1DS20111221

By Jonathon Burch

ISTANBUL | Wed Dec 21, 2011 11:46am EST

(Reuters) – Press freedom groups condemned the arrests of dozens of journalists across Turkey this week, which rights groups say could make it one of the countries with the most reporters in jail.

France-based Reporters Without Borders said on Tuesday it was “astonished” at the scale and manner of the detentions, which have “no place in a democratic state”, and urged Turkish authorities to explain in detail the reasons for the arrests.

The latest arrests could push the number of reporters in Turkish jails above 100, among the highest in the world, and will fuel accusations Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s government is intolerant of dissent and is trying to tame the media.

Strong Reaction to Journalists’ Arrest

Thousands gathered in Istanbul and Ankara, protesting the arrest of journalists in relation to the infamous KCK operations. Journalists, MPs, rights activists, union leaders condemn the latest police operation as the final nail on the coffin of freedom of expression in Turkey.

İstanbul – BİA News Center

21 December 2011, Wednesday

Thousands of people took to the streets in Istanbul and Ankara, protesting the arrest of journalists on allegations related to the so-called KCK operation. Police operations, investigations and massive trials into The Union of Kurdish Communities (KCK), the umbrella organization that includes the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have seen thousands of pro-Kurdish politicians and rights activists arrested in the last two years.

Turkey’s War on Journalists

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/12/22/turkeys_war_on_journalists?page=full

As Prime Minister Erdogan’s government grows increasingly intolerant of dissent, the media is bearing the brunt of its effort to silence its critics.

BY ALIA MALEK | DECEMBER 22, 2011

ISTANBUL —When the terrorism trial of jailed Turkish journalists Ahmet Sik and Nedim Sener began in Istanbul on Nov. 22, only a handful of their colleagues — far fewer than expected — gathered in protest outside the courthouse that will decide their fate.

A mosaic of the smiling photographs of many of Turkey’s detained journalists was laid out on the ground at the foot of a swarm of TV tripods, their cameras aiming for a glimpse of the defendants. Sik and Sener’s case is perhaps the most high-profile example of what critics see as the Turkish government’s crackdown on critical voices, which has transformed it into one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists.

Turkish Journalist Sends Message from Prison

World Press Freedom Hero Nedim Şener Extends Wish for ‘A World of Freedom’

Turkish journalist Nedim Sener receives the IPI World Press Freedom Hero Award from IPI Director Alison Bethel McKenzie at the IPI World Congress 2010

VIENNA, 21 Dec. 2011 – International Press Institute (IPI) World Press Freedom Hero Nedim Şener, a Turkish investigative journalist and writer and winner of the Freedom of Expression Award, last week sent holiday greetings to colleagues and supporters from the Silivri prison.

CPJ condemns journalist arrests in Turkey

December 22, 2011

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Ceyhun Atıf Kansu Caddesi No. 122
Balgat
Ankara, Turkey

Via facsimile: +90 312 473 64 55

Dear Prime Minister Erdoğan,

The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to condemn the arrests of as many as 29 journalists in raids on Tuesday as well as the ongoing media repression that has earned Turkey a reputation as one of the world’s worst press freedom violators and done grave damage to the consolidation of Turkish democracy.

In coordinated raids that stretched from Istanbul to Diyarbakir, and from Ankara to Izmir, police detained 40 individuals, according to state-run media. News reports said many are journalists, although the precise number is not clear. So far, CPJ has been able to identify 29 journalists by name and affiliation, and it continues to examine 11 others. Your government claims that the operation targets “the press and propaganda” arm of the Union of Kurdistan Communities (KCK), but it provides no evidence supporting this assertion. Authorities maintain that the KCK is the “urban wing” of the banned Kurdistan Workers Party, a claim that has been widely disputed.

Report: Journalists detained in Turkey

AP foreign, Tuesday December 20 2011, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/10004577?fb=native

SUZAN FRASER

Associated Press= ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish police on Tuesday detained some 40 people, including journalists, as part of a growing investigation into a Kurdish group that prosecutors accuse of links to Kurdish rebels, the country’s state-run television said.

The private Dogan news agency said Mustafa Ozer, a photographer working for the French news agency, Agence France Presse, and journalists for Kurdish media organizations were among the detained. Photographs obtained by The Associated Press show Ozer smiling as he is being led by a plain-clothed police officer into a van.

Turkey Arrests Journalists It Ties to Outlawed Group

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204058404577110491968093640.html

21.12.2011, By AYLA ALBAYRAK

ISTANBUL—Twenty-six journalists were among the suspects arrested on Tuesday in a crackdown on an organization tied to Turkey’s outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, a media watchdog said, heightening criticism of the country’s record on press freedom.

If the number is confirmed, the arrests would bring the number of journalists in Turkish jails to more than 90, one of the highest detention numbers for journalists in the world, the Bianet media-rights monitoring group said.

The journalists, most of them working for Kurdish newspapers and agencies, were arrested on Tuesday as part of an operation against the Kurdistan Communities Union, or KCK, an umbrella organization for Kurdish nationalist groups that the government says acts as the urban wing of the PKK.

Journalists detained in Turkey

December 20, 2011 06:17 PM By Suzan Fraser ,  http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Dec-20/157436-journalists-detained-in-turkey.ashx#axzz1h6xDY3Pb

A plainclothes policeman escorts Agence France Presse (AFP) photographer Mustafa Ozer to a police van. (AP Photo)

ANKARA: Turkish police on Tuesday detained some 40 people, including journalists, as part of a growing investigation into a Kurdish group that prosecutors accuse of links to Kurdish rebels, the country’s state-run television said.

The private Dogan news agency said Mustafa Ozer, a photographer working for the French news agency, Agence France Presse, and journalists for Kurdish media organizations were among the detained. Photographs obtained by The Associated Press show Ozer smiling as he is being led by a plain-clothed police officer into a van.

Turkey arrests journalists in alleged terror plot

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/12/20/world/meast/turkey-journalists-arrested/index.html

By Ivan Watson and Yesim Comert, CNN

December 20, 2011 — Updated 2317 GMT (0717 HKT)

Journalists and human rights activists gather in Istanbul on Tuesday to protest the detention of dozens of journalists.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Police raids target journalists; dozens of people detained
• “We consider this a witch hunt and a threat to anyone who is in opposition,” says newspaper executive
• Observer says this is an ongoing clampdown “against people who are not terrorists”
• Journalists say press freedom is under attack in Turkey

Istanbul (CNN) — Turkish police detained dozens of people in a wave of raids targeting suspected members of the “press and propaganda wing” of a banned Kurdish separatist group accused of committing acts of terrorism, the semi-official Anatolian Agency reported Tuesday.

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