Court rules in favor of journalist not given press card for four years

Journalist Birkan Bulut hasn't been issued a press card since he made an application to the Communications Directorate in 2017.

İstanbul

Court rules in favor of journalist not given press card for four years

Presidency Communications Director Fahrettin Altun

Click to read the article in Turkish

The Ankara 14th Administrative Court has given a verdict of "stay of execution" in the lawsuit filed by Birkan Bulut, the Ankara representative of Evrensel newspaper.

Bulut applied to the Presidency Communications Directorate in 2017 for a press card but hasn't received a response despite fulfilling all the conditions in the relevant regulations.

The journalist filed a lawsuit against the directorate, demanding the press card be given to him.

"Journalism can be done without a card"

In its defense statement, the Communications Directorate claimed that the journalist intended to deceive the court and the case should be dropped due to the lapse of time.

The directorate also said the waiting period for a press card starts after it evaluates applications. However, the regulation says the waiting period starts after a journalist completes their application.

Journalism can be done without a press card and the fact that the applicant had been continuing to do journalism proves that there was no interference with freedom of the press, the directorate argued.

Stay of execution

The court concluded that irreparable damage may occur if the journalist will not be able to benefit from the opportunities provided by the press card.

It issued an order of stay of execution for the situation of the directorate "not processing" the application.

Since it was granted the authority to issue press cards in 2018, the Communications Directorate has delayed the issuance of the press cards of many journalists, including those who wanted to renew their cards.

Cases filed by bianet Project Coordinator Nadire Mater and journalist Aydın Engin, whose permanent press cards have not been renewed since 2018, are continuing.

Mustafa Sönmez won the case it filed against the directorate. The Ankara 12th Administrative Court ordered the Communications Directorate to deliver a permanent press card to the journalist.

Communications Directorate and press cards

Press cards used to be granted by the Prime Ministry's Directorate General of Press and Information, so by the state, in Turkey. After Turkey adopted the Presidential Government System, this authority has been transferred to the Presidency's Communications Directorate.

The Press Card Regulation was amended on December 14, 2018, which marked the 14th regulation drafted since 1947.

The color of the press cards was changed from yellow to turquoise. Yellow press cards were canceled. The holders of yellow press cards were asked to make an application again. However, hundreds of journalists who had press cards were not given the new press cards. The Communications Directorate canceled or suspended the press cards on various grounds.

In the meantime, the Progressive Journalists Association applied to the Council of State in February 2019 and demanded that six articles of the Press Card Regulation in breach of the Constitution and laws be annulled and their execution be halted. The related articles were against freedom of press and expression and overstepped the authorities granted by laws.

The Council of State's Plenary Session of Administrative Law Chambers annulled the authority of the Presidency's Communications Directorate to cancel press cards and permanent press cards on such grounds as "acting in such a way to undermine the press professional honor", "acting against national security or public order" and "doing them habitually."

The related Council of State ruling noted that the regulation in question would keep journalists under pressure and concerns. It halted the execution of the Press Card Regulation by underlining that the basic principles that also contained the conditions for holding a press card should be arranged in such a way that this right would not be arbitrarily interfered with.

Following this decision, a new regulation was published in the Official Gazette on May 20, 2021. Signed by President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, this new regulation was almost the exact same as the one issued in 2018.

Professional journalism and labor organizations, namely the Progressive Journalists Association, DİSK Press Union, Journalists' Union of Turkey, Journalists Association and Photojournalists Association of Turkey, took legal action against the Press Card Regulation again.

(HA/VK)