90 Trials for 192 Editions of Daily Gundem

Editor-in-chief Ucar said 12 new cases have been brought against the daly Ulkede Ozgur Gundem after the DGMs were annulled. It is still a crime to publish announcements by a non-violent group, said Ucar. He argued there are 90 cases against the daily.

Erol Önderoğlu

Irfan Ucar, the editor-in-chief of the Ulkede Ozgur Gundem (Free Agenda in the Country) newspaper said a total of 90 cases had been brought against the Free Agenda newspaper for 192 editions.

Journalist Ucar said 15 cases, based on articles 159 and 312 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) were being heard at an Istanbul Court. He added that 12 new cases against the newspaper had been brought at the specialty courts established to replace the State Security Courts.

The fact that article 169 of the TCK, which has been used to charge the newspaper with "aiding a terrorist organization," can no longer be used against the media, and the fact that article 8 of the anti-terrorism law (TMY) which was about "separatism" has been annulled, through reforms, has not reduced the number of cases brought against the newspaper, said Ucar.

He said cases were still brought against Free Agenda for charges of "disseminating propaganda about a terrorist organization," (TMY 7/2) and "publishing announcements by a terrorist organization" (TMY 6/2) although they are not a crime, he argued.

Ucar said announcements by the Kurdish rebel group Kongra-Gel are increasingly charged as being "propaganda." "Thirteen trials are still based on TMY 7/2, 31 on TMY 6/2, and 31 trials are based on both," he said.

Ucar said the European Court of Human Rights guarantees the freedom of expressing all opinions unless they openly call for violence. "In Turkey, it is still a crime to publish announcements by a non-violent group," he added. (EO/EA/YE)

Origin

BÄ°A News Center

Erol Önderoğlu

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A graduate of the French Language and Literature Department at İstanbul University. He has served as the Turkey representative for the international organization Reporters Without...

A graduate of the French Language and Literature Department at İstanbul University. He has served as the Turkey representative for the international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF), where he began as a reporter in 1996. Since 1999, he has worked at bianet, a project of the IPS Communication Foundation, as the coordinator of the Legal Support Desk, editor for freedom of expression, and editor-in-chief. He has authored more than 4,800 signed news articles and opinion pieces. He has also written for Bizim Gazete and the journal Güncel Hukuk. He currently prepares the Media Monitoring Reports at bianet.