TGC Sues Police Over Media Ban

Journalists Society of Turkey (TGC) applied to Istanbul Regional Administrational Court in order to sue police authorities over the entry ban and eviction of press rooms across Turkey’s police stations.

“In the light of latest news sources as well as European Declaration of Human Rights, Turkey’s Constitution and related legislations, we are requesting the suspension of the aforementioned decision in order to prevent damages that are hard to compromise and impossible to return,” the statement said. 

Olcayto: Our colleagues will lose their jobs 

TGC members assembled in the front of the courthouse, releasing a statement. 

“If journalists won’t write their articles in the pressroom or make live coverage on TV, how will the news break? It will be a challenge for a lot of journalists who are specialized in police/crime field. Maybe a lot of them will lose their jobs. They will be forced to write up an article dictated by official sources. If we would like to live in a contemporary democracy, we must remove all obstacles on freedom of expression. Journalists are holding a public service. If police is working for public, it is the same case for journalists whose job is to inform the public. Journalists must be able to perform their duties in an independent and free fashion,” TGC Chair Turgay Olcayto said in a statement.  

TGC Legal Advisor Gökhan Küçük, on the other hand, said the case could take a year to close if judicial authorities didn’t take it seriously. 

On December 22, police authorities in Istanbul announced that media representatives will no longer be allowed within the premisses of police stations across Turkey. They also asked media representatives in Vatan and Gayrettepe premisses in Istanbul to return the keys of media rooms and entrance IDs. (EA/BM)