Turkey: From ‘Misinformations Bill’ to Mass Detentions - Journalists Are Under Threat In All Forms Of Violations
Location: Turkey
Date: October 25, 2022Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
Several journalists were detained in five different cities as part of an investigation carried out by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. The houses of 11 journalists, including 7 women, were raided by the police and detained after being subjected to police violence. The Coalition For Women In Journalism (CFWIJ) demands an end to arbitrary crackdown on press freedom and immediate release of journalists.
This morning, Mezopotamya Agency (MA) Editor-in-Chief Diren Yurtsever, MA reporters Zemo Ağgöz, Berivan Altan, Ceylan Şahinli, JINNEWS reporters Habibe Eren, Öznur Değer and Derya Ren were detained in police raids on their homes in corresponding cities:
Ankara: The detentions began at 07:00 in the morning with a police raid on the Ankara bureau of Mesopotamia Agency. The police confiscated five computers, one telephone, two hard drives, notebooks, books and microphones at the end of the search which lasted for 6 hours. Also, ID card and phone of MA reporter Şervin Özviran, who was in the office during the police raid, were also confiscated by the police.
In Ankara, the houses of MA reporter Zemo Ağgöz and journalist Berivan Altan were also raided by the police, and the journalists were detained. Their computers were confiscated and they were both kept on the ground for a long time in reverse handcuffs.
Istanbul: The house of MA Editor-in-Chief Diren Yurtsever in Istanbul was raided and the journalist was detained. Her books were confiscated. After her house was searched, she was taken to the Istanbul Security Directorate to give a statement.
Mardin: Öznur Değer's house in Kızıltepe was also raided by the police in early morning and she was detained.
Urfa: As part of the same investigation, MA reporter Ceylan Şahinli was also detained. Her computer and camera were confiscated during the police raid on her home. Ceylan’s family house was also raided by the police.
Diyarbakır: In the morning, JINNEWS reporters Habibe Eren and Derya Ren were also detained from their homes in Diyarbakır. The police confiscated many of the books from the journalists' homes. Derya Ren was taken into custody due to a different investigation. She was kept in custody for hours and was transferred to the courthouse. Derya, who was taken into custody due to the finalization of the prison sentence, was arrested and sent to Diyarbakır Women's Closed Prison.
Detained journalists were taken to Ankara by the police after massive police raids. Jinnews reporter Dilan Babat stated in her tweet that journalists were ill-treated by the police, insulted with reverse handcuffs, and many materials were confiscated.
Footage taken during the detention of journalists, whose houses were raided with long-barreled weapons, kept in handcuffs for hours, and exposed to insults and ill-treatment, were shared on the Twitter account of the Ankara Security Directorate as part of a terror-related investigation. Journalists, who only pursued the truth, were treated as if they are members of a terrorist organization and their files were evaluated within the scope of the fight against terrorism.
“These raids are actually not a different matter of the censorship law passed by the parliament recently.”
Speaking to CFWIJ, journalist and Dicle Fırat Journalists Association Co-chairman Dicle Müftüoğlu stated that journalists were detained under torture.
“This morning, many journalists were detained in nine different cities in Turkey. As far as we know, unfortunately, 11 journalists were detained under torture. Especially in the house raids in Ankara, guns were put on their heads and they were kept in reverse handcuffs for a long time. Again, in the footage served by the police, we saw that our friends were forcibly lowering their heads.”
Stating that all of the journalists detained right after the new ‘disinformation law” in Turkey were members of Dicle Fırat Journalists Association, Dicle called for immediate steps to be taken for their release.
“These raids are actually not a different matter of the censorship law passed by the parliament recently. Unfortunately, the situation becomes more complicated when it comes to Kurdish journalists. This pressure clamp gets narrower. We condemn these operations aimed at silencing journalists and obscuring the facts. I would also like to state that each detained journalist is a member of our association. We expect their release soon. We will fight for this too. In this sense, we call on everyone to take steps to release journalists and ensure freedom of press and expression.”
Turkey Ranks First in Detention Cases Around the World
Since January 2022, Turkey has become the top country with the most number of women journalists detained in the world. Since the beginning of the year, 28 female journalists have been detained in Turkey. Russia has become the second country to detain 20 female journalists. 33% of detention cases in the world were recorded in Turkey only. If the violence against free press does not end, it is expected that number of violation cases against journalists will increase even more.
Compared to the entirety of 2021, the number of women journalists detained increased by 27% as of October this year. Turkey, which ranks first in many violence categories, seems to break a new record this year.
Violence Against Journalists In a Climate of Fear
With the disinformation bill passed by the parliament on October 13, 2022, the first step was taken to intimidate journalists and create a climate of fear. After this law, which puts both journalists and millions of internet users at risk of criminal sanctions with ambiguous expressions, journalists began to be detained. With this regulation in the law, violence against journalists is also tried to be hidden.
CFWIJ condemns all forms of violence against women journalists and demands their immediate release. Trying to imprison journalists for terrorist crimes, who only inform the public by practising their profession, is one of the biggest blows to freedom of the press. We demand a free environment where journalists can work safely.
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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