‘Pressure on journalists became more systematic in 2020’

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

Based in southeast Turkey, Tigris-Euphrates Journalists' Association (DFG) has released its "Rights Violations Targeting Journalists" report.

According to the 2020 annual report of the association, at least 79 journalists were detained, 24 journalists were arrested, 19 journalists were attacked and 43 journalists were sentenced to 150 years, 15 days in prison and 56 thousand 310 lira fines in total last year.

The findings of the report were shared with the public in a press conference held in the association's office in Yenişehir, Diyarbakır.

Taking the floor at the conference, Dicle Müftüoğlu, the Co-Chair of the association, said that 2020 had witnessed major political, social and economic crises and defined the past year as a "bag of problems"

Underlining that there was an attempt to silence journalists in 2020, rather than trying to solve the problems, Müftüoğlu raised concerns that the pressure on journalists had come more systematic last year.

'The real aim is to close people's eyes, ears'

Listing the violations of rights faced by journalists such as detentions, arrests, investigations, lawsuits, prison sentences, access blocks and black-outs, Müftüoğlu briefly made the following remarks:

"Last year, journalists faced these and similar types of pressure almost everyday. Press laborers who do not enter the pool created by the government, want to make the others' voices heard and act in accordance with the principles of true and brave reporting were turned into targets.

"Even though their target was press laborers, the aim is to close the eyes and ears of people. The aim is to prevent people from seeing and hearing. That is why today's political power holders have formed their own press."

'Kurdish journalists are having more trouble'

At this point, Dicle Müftüoğlu underlined that a separate chapter has to be opened for Kurdish journalists and briefly said:

"As it is also the case in every field in Turkey, Kurds are having serious hardships in the field of press and media. The pressure and force on Kurdish journalists are getting more and more aggravated.

"As in the case of the arrest of our five fellow journalists in Van, Kurdish journalists might encounter several obstacles in their work areas."

She noted that Turkey ranks among the least free countries in terms of press freedom while it is among the biggest jailers of journalists in the world.

"We cannot say that the journalists not sent to prison enjoy their freedom in the true sense of the term," said Müftüoğlu and added, "Even if they are outside, press laborers were faced with a state of imprisonment. They were prevented from practicing their profession in different ways. Journalists had to spend a lot of time, waiting in the halls of courthouses or giving statements at police stations due to the news that they had reported."

'Impossible to talk about freedom'

Elaborating further on censorship and publication blocks, Müftüoğlu raised concerns that this situation has become ordinary:

"Hundreds of websites are subjected to censorship and closure due to the contents they publish. The government can remove the news content it dislikes. Thousands of social media accounts are censored by being closed as a result of pressures on related institutions. Hundreds of people posting messages on social media face investigations, lawsuits, penalties."

Concluding her remarks, Müftüoğlu stressed the importance of press freedom and said, "Because in a place where the press is not free, we cannot talk about the freedom of society and democracy."

The scale of censorship and pressure

Then, DFG Co-Chair Serdar Altan listed the violations of rights faced by journalists in Turkey in 2020:

• Detained journalists: 79
• Arrested journalists: 24
• Attacked journalists: 19
• Maltreatment, threat, forcing to become an agent: 17
• Journalists prevented during news coverage: 12 incidents
• Journalists facing an investigation: 54
• Journalists facing a lawsuit: 53
• Penalized journalists: 43 people, 150 years, 15 days in prison, a total fine of 56.310 TRY (~7,640 USD)
• Journalists still on trial: 231 files, 539 journalists
• Journalists fined by public ad cuts: 8
• Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) fines: 43
• Access blocks on the Internet: 1,960 news, 145 websites
• Dismissed journalists: 6
• Number of arrested journalists (as of January 4, 2021): 90

* Click here for the full report (in Turkish)

(HA/SD)