‘Demirören thought that it could get away with unlawfulness’

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"One and a half years after Doğan Media Group was sold to Demirören, we were dismissed from Hürriyet newspaper. We, 45 people, were given the gate without compensation. Doesn't Demirören have the means to pay the compensation of 45 people? They - of course - have this money. They must have thought that they could get away with their unlawfulness."

After pro-government Demirören Media Group bought Doğan Media Group, the then largest media conglomerate of Turkey, in March 2018, several journalists were dismissed from media outlets such as Kanal D and CNN Türk TV channels and Hürriyet newspaper.

İpek Yezdani is one of those several journalists who were laid off in that period. Nearly one and a half years after the sale, Yezdani, along with 44 others, was informed about her dismissal with a written notification. Moreover, their compensation has not yet been paid.

What has brought the Demirören Media to Turkey's public agenda again is the allegations of crime group leader Sedat Peker. In his 9th and latest video posted on Sunday (June 6), Peker alleged that Demirören has paid back neither the instalments nor the interests of the 750 million dollars of loan it received from Ziraat Bank, a public bank, to buy Doğan Media Group.

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According to the information provided to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP) at the time of purchase, Demirören Holding paid 916 million dollars to buy the media group. When calculated based on the current exchange rates, it accounts for 7 billion 900 million 536 thousand lira.

As for the Ziraat Bank, it does not give information about the details of the credit used by Demirören, saying that it is a 'trade secret'. Regardless of how big a sale it was, journalists who try to do their jobs under all circumstances have been affected by this development.

Speaking about their dismissal following this purchase with a Ziraat Bank credit, journalist İpek Yezdani says: "I don't think that we were dismissed by the hand of the state. Demirören Media, I mean, Hürriyet newspaper, dismissed us in an unlawful manner by seizing our legal receivables and compensation."

She adds: "When we told people about what happened in the following period, no one believed us. People reacted, 'How on earth doesn't Demirören pay your compensation?' But, unfortunately, this is the current point of unlawfulness in Turkey."

'They don't pay us our own money'

Defining Demirören's dismissal of journalists without paying their compensation as unlawful and not legal, Yezdani says, "They felt so comfortable to do this in such a daring and bold manner" and adds:

"It has been one and a half years since then. Our legal receivables have not been paid yet. For instance, me... I worked there for 9 years. There are also some fellow journalists who worked for 20-25 years. All in all, the money seized by Demirören is our money. I mean, there is no difference between a burglar breaking into your house and stealing your belongings and what was done to us. They do not pay us the money that belongs to us in the first place. We have filed lawsuits. These lawsuits are still ongoing."

'We were unwanted'

According to what İpek Yezdani says, the 505-year compensation of 45 people has been seized. Noting that among the dismissed people were also the ones treated for cancer and sustaining their families, Yezdani reiterates, "Demirören has seized our labor" and adds:

"After Hürriyet changed hands and came to be owned by Demirören, there was a 180-degree turn in the news, but there was no mobbing targeting us. The reason for this was that Vahap Munyar, the then Editor-in-Chief, made efforts to ensure that there would be no meddling with the internal functioning of Hürriyet. But, the editorial pressure - of course - mounted.

"Munyar was not informed that we, 45 journalists, were dismissed. Imagine: 45 journalists are dismissed from a newspaper and the Editor-in-Chief has no idea about it. He himself resigned after this incident.

"No one called us and said, 'We dismiss you, here is your compensation.' We were not even informed that we were dismissed. Written notifications were sent to our houses. Elif Karacaoğlu was the director of human resources while this operation was carried out and we were dismissed in a humiliating manner and without compensation. She came after the sale. She is now promoted to the Demirören Media Human Resources Group Chair.

'They thought they could get away with it'

"Our friends who were not delivered the written notification learned about their dismissal when they could not sign in to access their email accounts. I learned about my dismissal from my mother while I was at the editorial meeting. They sent the written notification to my house.

"As no one, including myself, knew that we were dismissed, we were still working. My mother called me during the editorial meeting and told me about my dismissal. Can you imagine the trauma I had?

"We were trying to do journalism impartially and by observing the principles of journalism. But, unfortunately, as objective, impartial, principled and ethical journalism is not desired in Turkey's mainstream media and partial journalism is wished for, there was no room for people like us.

"At that time, we asked Elif Karacaoğlu, 'When will you pay us our compensation?' She said, 'We will call you by this weekend.' But no one has ever called us. Doesn't Demirören have the means to pay the compensation of 45 people? They - of course - have this money. They must have thought that they could get away with their unlawfulness." (HA/SD)