“Press Freedom Cannot Be Spoken of in Turkey”

Click here to read the article in Turkish / Haberin Türkçesi için buraya tıklayın

Editor-in-Chief of Sputnik and Russia Today (RT), Margarita Simonyan making a statement following the blocking of Sputnik news site by Telecommunications Communication Presidency (TİB) has evaluated the situation as “a new example of strict censor policies in Turkey”.

According to news on Sputnik News, Simonyan said the followings:

“It is not possible to speak of a concept like freedom of the press anymore in Turkey. There is no such thing as press freedom in that country.

CLICK - SPUTNIK NEWS SITE CENSORED

“Considering that Sputnik was deemed worthy of prize by Turkish Journalists’ Association (TGC) just a few days ago, this decision looks especially ridiculous”.

Blocked after Putin spoke

Access to Sputnik was blocked a few hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statements on “Direct Line with Vladimir Putin” program as to Russia-Turkey relations.

Putin on this program had expressed that he sees Turkey as a friend but has some issues with certain politicians.

Putin also had added that government of Turkey cooperates with radical Islamists in Syria instead of fighting them.

EP as well had highlighted freedom of the press

Turkey’s Progress Report prepared by European Parliament’s (EP) Netherlander socialist member, Kati Piri was approved by majority of votes at EP General Assembly yesterday.

EU Turkey Rapporteur Piri defending “Turkey has been backsliding from European standards” said “We need a stable and more democratic Turkey”.

“As for freedom of the press, supremacy of law and the issue about Kurdish minority in the southeast, we have deep concerns with respect to some internal developments”, Piri had added. (EKN/TK)