Türkiye: Tip of the Iceberg - 6 Women Journalists Targeted For Election Coverage
Women journalists face death threats, physical assault, and arbitrary denial of access during the second round of presidential elections
Location: Turkey, Istanbul, Mardin
Date: May 28, 2023Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
The Coalition For Women In Journalism continued monitoring election season through the reruns and observed several violations, including denial of access to the press, unjustified impediments, and physical assaults on women journalists. We observed different tactics used to target journalists from diverse backgrounds. Where local women reporters, both Turkish and Kurdish, faced physical assaults, foreign correspondents faced online harassment. CFWIJ finds some of these attacks, particularly those on Kurdish journalists, to be organized. These violations against women journalists covering the elections show a blatant disregard for freedom of expression and journalist safety in Türkiye. CFWIJ strongly condemns the violations and urges the Turkish government to put an end to the harassment and intimidation of women journalists in its new term.
“Given the history of press freedom attacks in Türkiye over the last few years, we were anxious as election season began,” says CFWIJ director Kiran Nazish, “but we were not expecting such a multi-pronged campaign against journalists in the country.”
On election day, four Turkish reporters shared they had been assaulted, harassed, and denied access to cover the elections.
Dokuz8haber’s Fatoş Erdoğan, who reported on the elections at a school in Istanbul, was attacked by an AKP school official while voting was underway. The assailant pulled the journalist's hair, tried confiscating her phone, and kicked her, injuring her hand.
While covering the elections in Istanbul, KRT TV reporter Sultan Eylem Keleş was unlawfully asked by an AKP school official for her press card. The official also prevented the journalist from capturing footage. Keleş filed a report with the police, who still has to respond to the complaint.
A series of events unfolded for Öznur Değer — a reporter for the Kurdish JINNEWS — during her coverage of the elections in Mardin, a city in the southeastern region of Turkey. She was obstructed from doing her job as a journalist by a bodyguard to AKP MP Faruk Kılıç, who hurled verbal assaults, insults, and threats at the reporter.
"No one can shoot without our permission here. You can only shoot if we allow it," the bodyguard shouted at the journalist, continuing to insult her with sexist language and threats.
“If we get used to and normalize what we experienced, I am afraid that we will not be able to talk about journalism in the future”
Değer attempted to file a police complaint, but police instead asked the prosecutor to investigate the journalist for "insulting a public official on duty," "violating the privacy of private life," and "illegally obtaining or seizing personal data." The prosecutor's office subsequently confiscated Değer’s phone.
The journalist told CFWIJ she was previously tortured by police in Ankara, and unjustly and illegally arrested. Değer spent 7 months in prison with 9 of my journalist colleagues.
“As a Kurdish journalist, I am harassed twice over. First as a Kurdish person, and second as a woman,” Değer tells CFWIJ. “If we get used to and normalize what we experienced, I am afraid that we will not be able to talk about journalism in the future.”
The Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) launched an investigation on May 30th into investigative journalist Çiğdem Toker. Toker stated in a Fox TV segment on May 28th, a day before the elections, that “democracy extends beyond the ballot box and includes citizen participation in other areas of politics.” The comment has been interpreted by pro-government pundits, including journalist Cem Küçük, as a call for a coup. If found guilty by RTÜK, punitive action in the form of fines or suspension may be taken against the journalist and FOX TV.
Organized Attacks On Kurdish Journalists
Over the past couple of months, CFWIJ has documented organized attacks against Kurdish journalists. In 2022, at least 43 women journalists working with Kurdish news were detained during raids. Lawsuits have been filed against women journalists. Four have been imprisoned for 10 months.
“It's been five years, CFWIJ has raised the issue with the crackdown against Kurdish journalists,” says Kiran Nazish, CFWIJ’s founder. “This particular stifling of Kurdish voices has been ignored in the mainstream, leading to an even greater number of journalists behind bars.”
Ahead of the elections, Kurdish journalists Elif Üngür, Neşe Toprak, Remziye Temel, and Safiye Alagaş were indicted on April 12 after being detained for 10 months. On April 14th, Dilan Akyol, a correspondent for the Mezopotamya News Agency, was detained by police as she left her home and charged with "terrorist propaganda."
Foreign correspondents bombarded by death and rape threats
Covering the elections, foreign correspondents Emily Wither — a freelancer with BBC and Channel 4 — and freelance journalist Stefanie Glinski shared they received a barrage of online harassment and threats. The abuse started after the journalists posted tweets on May 25th highlighting anti-Syrian sentiments in presidential candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s campaign posters.
Only a couple of hours after her tweet went up — which thus far has over 7 million views — Emily Wither had to close her DMs. It didn’t take long before the trolls found her Instagram account filling her chats with vile messages.
Several of the hundreds of messages she received contained death and rape threats. One threatened her family. In the thousands of public replies, several people call the reporter a racist.
“What made me feel the most uncomfortable is people calling me racist,” Wither tells CFWIJ, saying the messages made her feel uncomfortable, as she feels it could affect her reputation.
Stefanie Glinski, freelancer, shared she received similar harassment online after pointing out the anti-refugee sentiment.
Tip Of The Iceberg
While Turkey leads violations of press freedom documented by CFWIJ over the past couple of years, women journalists reporting on the country tell us they do not often share when they are intimidated, harassed, denied access, or in any other way obstructed from doing their job.
“A few people asked me if I was going to report the messages I received,” Withers tells CFWIJ, “and the answer was no, because I feel, well this is what happens sometimes.”
Journalists frequently experience violence and hate speech online in connection to their work. Women journalists in particular are exposed to misogynist, sexist and sexualized online hatred. CFWIJ documented eight organized troll campaigns in 2022.
“Online harassment is a pervasive issue in Turkey. However, documenting every instance is a challenge because women journalists often do not report incidents of online harassment. Due to its frequency, they have come to view it as an unfortunate aspect of their job. While acknowledging its negative impact, many prefer to handle it on their own. Nonetheless, every woman journalist we have spoken with thus far has experienced threatening behavior, abusive comments, and other forms of harassment.”
- Damla Tarhan Durmuş, CFWIJ Operations Manager
One of the journalists CFWIJ talked to for this report says she subconsciously censors herself sometimes. Another journalist asked us not to mention her name when she described the growing anti-Western sentiments in the country in fear of retaliation.
“Any sentence we write, particularly on Twitter, can prompt investigations and smear campaigns against us”
“We all engage in self-censorship to some extent,” journalist Seran Vreskala says. “Any sentence we write, particularly on Twitter, can prompt investigations and smear campaigns against us.”
Vreskala tells us she stays fully dressed for hours after publishing news critical of the authorities. “The police may raid my home until five in the mornings,” she explains.
Failures Of Free And Fair Elections
“Everyday we have been notified of new ways journalists across the country have been targeted”
Dissenting voices struggle to be heard in Türkiye covering the elections. The Journalists’ Union of Türkiye (TGS) Istanbul Branch President Banu Tuna tells CFWIJ how especially journalists working with pro-opposition media outlets reported “experiencing varying degrees of harassment and attacks.”
The joint election observation mission to Türkiye from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA), and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) found that “media bias and ongoing restrictions to freedom of expression created an unlevel playing field.”
“Everyday we have been notified of new ways journalists across the country have been targeted,” says Kiran Nazish. “Particularly, the attacks on women journalists, including and especially assaults and confiscation of equipment reflect the failures of free, fair and safe election.”
“Under the renewed leadership of President Erdogan, we urge for an effort for a more hopeful and censorship-free era”
According the RSF’s latest World Press Freedom Index, Turkiye fell 16 places and ranks 165th out of 180 countries.
“Under the renewed leadership of President Erdogan, we urge for an effort for a more hopeful and censorship-free era,” says CFWIJ’s Kiran Nazish. “The government should ensure this new term will put an end to the harassment and intimidation against women journalists.”
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is appalled by the attacks on the media this election season. Governments must protect and respect freedom of the press, a crucial component of a healthy and functioning democracy. The escalating — organized — pressure and aggression women journalists face in Turkey is a disturbing trend against press freedom and shows a blatant disregard for freedom of the press. If the media cannot do its job without facing severe intimidation, election results will always be open to question, undermining the legitimacy and effectiveness of the new government. CFWIJ urges the Turkish government to halt legally harassing opposition-minded and independent media. We also demand authorities protect women journalists from online abuse and physical harassment.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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