Free Journalists Initiative Releases Its October Report

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The Free Journalists Initiative (ÖGİ) has released its report on violations of rights committed against journalists in October 2018.

Emphasizing that the perpetrators of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi should be brought to justice, the report has also addressed the murder of newspaper distributor Kadri Bağdu:

"On this occasion, we have been, once again, condemning that almost no progress has been made in the investigation that has been launched into the murder of Kadri Bağdu, who was working as a distributor for the Azadiya Welat newspaper, which was closed as per a Statutory Decree, and lost his life in an armed attack in the district of Seyhan in Adana in 2014 while he was distributing newspapers.

"Despite the confessions of Servet Koç, a member of the ISIS, the murder of Kadri Bağdu has not been brought to light, which we view as an obstacle posed by the political perspective."

According to the October report of the initiative:

* 172 journalists have been currently behind bars

* 15 journalists were taken into custody in October 2018

* One journalist was arrested

* A lawsuit was filed against one journalist

* 42 journalists were put on trial

* Five journalists were sentenced to 12 years, 6 months and 27 days in prison in total

* One journalist was killed

* One journalist was exiled

* Two journalists were released from prison

* Six journalists were dismissed from their jobs

Concluding the report, the Free Journalists Initiative has demanded that oppression and rights violations against journalists be ended, the lawsuits to be filed against them be dropped and the arrested journalists be released.

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(EMK/SD)

* The above photograph shows some of the journalists who have been currently behind bars, namely, Zehra Doğan (on the right), Semiha Şahin, Pınar Gayıp, Kibriye Evren, Nedim Türfent, İsminaz Temel and Ahmet Altan.