Inquiry into journalist who suggested there might be more people trapped underground

Artı TV presenter Şükran Ekinci gave a statement regarding her sharing about the possibility of the number of miners trapped underground at Erzincan Anagold Mining's Çöpler Gold Mine being higher than the official figures.

The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office initiated an investigation against Ekinci on charges of "public dissemination of misleading information (Article 217/A)" added to the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) along with the censorship law.

Yesterday (February 15), Ekinci gave her statement together with lawyer Fatih Aydın from the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA).

During her statement, Ekinci was asked about her post where she stated, 'Officials said 9 workers, but Türkkolu, the President of the Chamber of Metallurgical and Materials Engineers, who spoke to T24, said  the miners trapped underground were five times the official figure. I hope he doesn't turn out to be right. However, he reflected that before this collapse, 667 workers had changed shifts!'

Ekinci admitted to making the post and stated, 'The source of the news is İrfan Türkkolu, the President of the Chamber of Metallurgical and Materials Engineers. She claimed that she made the post to inform the public and did not accept the accusation.

Ekinci's lawyer Fatih Aydın pointed out that the investigation was initiated through online patrol and open-source research by law enforcement, reminding that such practices had been invalidated by the Constitutional Court. He stated that the current form of the investigation was not in accordance with the procedure.

Aydın stated, "My client is a journalist. Due to her profession, she has the obligation to inform the public." He requested that the case be dismissed

"They called me in for questioning within less than 24 hours"

After the interrogation, Ekinci stated, "On a day when we are experiencing a disaster and still cannot reach the miners trapped underground, I was called in for questioning with the accusation of 'public dissemination of misleading information' (within less than 24 hours). I drew attention to the situation in the region and conveyed the discourse of an expert.

I denied the accusation and stated that I acted in accordance with the requirements of journalism. While our colleagues have been unjustly imprisoned for months or even years just for doing their job, mine seems quite trivial, to be honest. I thank everyone again for the attention shown. Journalism is not a crime." (HA/PE)