A public suit has been filed against Cumhuriyet newspaper publisher İlhan Selçuk, editor-in-chief Mehmet Sucu, and reporter Alper Turgut, for not paying a USD 50 thousand fine levied against them for publishing a report called Acquittal for Torture.

BIA² organized its third seminar on Womens Rights and Womens Rights Reporting in Eskisehir. Educators and media employees from the provinces of Eskisehir, Bilecik and Kirsehir attended the seminar.

Human rights groups IHD and Mazlumder are concerned about the intensifying recent clashes in the southeast and Kurdish areas, and are campaigning for an end to military operations and the replacement of violence with political solutions.

Reporters from 31 local media in Adiyaman, Ardahan, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Erzincan, Gaziantep, Hakkari, Igdir, Malatya, Mardin, Mus, Siirt, Sivas, Sanliurfa, Sirnak, Midyat, Nizip and Van discussed Womens Reporting.

The proposed changes to the Anti-Terror Law carry penalties of three-year prison terms for publication of the statements of a terrorist organization and terrorist organization propaganda. The changes could result in ECHR lawsuits.

Sanar Yurdatapan, the spokesperson for the Initiative Against Thought Crimes, criticized the court for deciding to have police officers bring writer Orhan Pamuk to the hearing. This decision was totally unnecessary, said Yurdatapan.

DIHA reporter Duru was arrested while he was investigating allegations about cannabis planting. The local court has rejected his demand to be released. His camera and tape recorder have not been returned so that the evidence is not fiddled with.

ECHR handed Turkey a fine of 166,000 dollars in damages last year, in 17 cases about freedom of expression, fair trials and journalist deaths. In the first six months of this year, ECHR has fined Turkey 370,000 dollars in damages.

Reporters Without Borders protests against the arrest of journalists who covered the release of Turkish infantryman private Kirandi. The legitimate and necessary fight against terrorism can never justify such violations of press freedom, the RSF said.

BİA2s second quarterly media monitoring report includes rights violations within the new legal setting of the new Penal Code, the Anti-Terrorism Act, RTUKs members election by the Parliament; and discusses union existence in the media sector.

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Bogatekin, the owner of the Gerger Firat newspaper was acquitted in which he was tried for writing an article.In another trial, he was handed a fine of 1,000 YTL for failing to inform the prosecutors office about the type of his publication within 30 day

Columnist Dilipaks flat has been sequestrated after he failed to pay a high fine. The Military Supreme Court has overturned a lower military courts decision to send a trial, in which he is charged with damaging juniority-seniority relations, ...

Yildirim is faced with up to three years in prison for criticizing some generals relations with holding companies, in an article published on www.sansursuz.com. In a second investigation opened against the writer after the article was published in Sol.

DIHA Reporters Suna and Bozkurt were attacked by a group of extreme nationalists as they were covering a clash between leftist and rightist students at the Istanbul University. The reporters filed a complaint against attackers.

A total of 121 NGO representatives from 21 provinces attended BIA²s communication training seminar for rights organizations. NGOs, which criticized the media for overlooking them, were more qualified to have their voices heard by the end of the seminar.

In spite of claims of unprecedented tolerance for freedom of expression, Prime Minister Erdogans continues sue cartoonists and humorists. Already 8 writers and journalists have been imprisoned during 28 months of his government in power.

NGO representatives, who attended the BIA ² projects training seminar for the rights organizations in Izmir, discussed their relations with the media. The media should be more conscious about the rights. The rights organizations have a lot to for that.

30 rights organizations attended the seminar, where Ugur, Gumrah, Gokcen and Onderoglu made presentations on rights organizations, globalization and becoming influential and visible through the media. The two-day seminar was stage to heated discussions.

44 NGO representatives from 11 provinces attended the first Training for Rights Organizations by BIA². We most of the time are at odds with the state because of the region they work in, and added the media prejudiced, the participants said.