Police ban journalists from recording police violence

Police response to May Day demonstrations in İstanbul (Photo: Vedat Örüç/bianet)

Several journalists were prevented by police from following May Day demonstrations and five were detained while working in the last two weeks, according to bianet's Media Monitoring Database.

Also, courts blocked access to two news portals and the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) imposed administrative penalties on two TV channels over political criticism.

A journalist and a columnist were acquitted of charges in two cases, a lawsuit was filed against a journalist and an investigation was opened against another one in two weeks.

Here is a summary of the legal interferences with the news media between April 19 and May 2:

Police ban filming police

On April 30, the Progressive Lawyers' Association (ÇHD) revealed that the Directorate General of Security issued a circular banning recording voices and images of police officers during demonstrations, which it says "violates officers' privacy." 

The circular instructs police to prevent people who capture images or voices of police officers during demonstrations and to take legal action against the related people.

Despite objections by lawyers, journalists and opposition politicians, the first application of the instructions came on May Day.

While Yol TV reporter Özge Uyanık was following the May Day demonstrations in the capital city of Ankara, police officers blocked her, threw her phone on the ground and stepped on it. 

The moments when police officers blocked Uyanık and threw her phone on the ground:

Ankara'da 'genelge'yi gerekçe gösteren polis #1Mayıs eylemlerini görüntüleyen Yol TV muhabiri Özge Uyanık'ın telefonunu yere atıp üzerine bastı pic.twitter.com/nFLdNpwJeF

— Yol TV (@YolTV) May 1, 2021

In İstanbul, Artı TV reporter Sultan Eylem Keleş was prevented by officers while she was filming the violent police response against the people trying to take to Taksim Square. 

Police told both journalists that they were acting upon the new circular. Uyanık later filed a complaint against the officers, accusing them of "threat", damaging property" and "misconduct in office." 

A total of 40 provincial bar associations across the country have filed cases for the annulment of the circular, citing concerns that it would lead to violation of fundamental rights.

CLICK - Ankara Bar appeals Security Directorate's circular 

CLICK - 'We are here, we are recording': Journalists defy ban on filming police officers 

Journalists detained while following events

In the last two weeks, five journalists were taken into custody while following two separate events.

On April 19, workers dismissed from the Sinbo home electronics company attempted to hold a press statement in front of the company's factory in Avcılar, İstanbul. Police prevented them and took them into custody. Three journalists were among the detained: Taylan Özgür Öztaş, a reporter for Özgür Gelecek, Serpil Ünal, a reporter for Mücadele Birliği, and Kardelen Yoğungan, a reporter for Kızıl Bayrak. 

Öztaş and Yoğungan were released after they gave their statements at the police station. Ünal was released a day later, on April 20, after spending one night at the detention center because of a detention warrant against her over a missing statement as part of an investigation against her due to her social media posts.

On April 26, Artı TV camera operator Bilal Meyveci and Mesopotamia Agency (MA) reporter Enes Sezgin were taken into custody while following the press statement held by the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) about the "Kobanî trial," where 108 members of the party are facing an aggravated life sentence.

With their equipment damaged, Meyveci and Sezgin were released a few hours later.  

RTÜK penalties

The RTÜK imposed administrative fines on three TV channels in two weeks.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Parliamentary Group Chair Engin Altay appeared as a guest on a discussion program on KRT TV on April 20.

The RTÜK imposed a fine on the broadcaster after concluding that some of Altay's remarks against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, his Justice and Development Party (AKP), and judicial institutions were beyond criticism they were humiliating and defaming. 

The RTÜK also fined TELE1 TV for a politician's remarks against the ruling party. It stated that Right Party Chair Rifat Serdaroğlu's remarks about the AKP were uttered in a manner of speaking about a terrorist organization, thereby undermining the party's prestige in the eyes of the public.

It said that the related remarks could not be considered within freedom of expression. 

The RTÜK also fined Kanal D TV on the grounds that some scenes in the "Camdaki Kız" (Girl at the Window) series were against gender equality and abusive for women. 

Access blocks

Judgeships blocked the websites of Mesopotamia Agency (MA) and JinNews. The outlets were blocked for the 31st time and 19th time, respectively. 

News portals use different web addresses, usually adding numbers to their names, in order to bypass court bans. After "mezopotamyaajansi31.com" was blocked, MA switched to "mezopotamyaajansi32.com" while JinNews continued on "jinnews20.xyz."

New cases and investigations

Journalist Mustafa Hoş announced that he was summoned to give a statement due to the information that he had given about the murder of Mehmet Mert Bayraktar committed in the 1990s in his book titled Neo Türkiye'nin Panzehiri Hafızadır (The Antidote of the Neo Turkey is Memory). 

Eren Tutel, the sports editor of BirGün newspaper, faced a lawsuit for "insulting a public official" as per article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code due to a news report about alleged irregularities in the Turkish Wushu Federation (TWF). 

Accepted by the İstanbul 2nd Penal Court of First Instance upon the complaint of TWF Deputy Chair Abdurrahman Akyüz and his daughter Elif Akyüz, the case will begin with the first hearing on September 30, 2021.

Acquittals

A lawsuit was filed against Yeni Yaşam newspaper Editor-in-Chief İnci Aydın on the charge of "propagandizing for a terrorist organization" due to a news report titled "Is a new attack imminent?" published on July 17, 2020.

At the final hearing on April 20, the court board handed down its ruling following the defense statements of the attorneys and ruled for the acquittal of Aydın on the grounds that "the element of the crime did not arise."

An appeals court on April 30 reversed the prison sentence of food engineer Asst. Prof. Bülent Şık, a columnist for bianet, for sharing the results of the Health Ministry's cancer research with the public. His 15-month prison sentence was overturned and Şık was acquitted. Prosecutors later appealed his acquittal.

(VK)