Dutch journalist detained in Turkey for the second time

September 6, 2015 By administrator

A Dutch journalist based in southeastern Diyarbakır province was detained Sept. 6 by the police for the second time, Netherland official news agency ANP has reported.

Frederike Geerdink was detained at around 2 a.m., as she was following the Democratic Peoples’ Party’s (HDP) program.

“I am in custody in Yüksekova,” Geerdink tweeted, adding she was with members of the human shield group who were also detained.

Thomas Bruning, the secretary general of Netherlands Journalists (NVJ), told ANP it was unacceptable the journalists had been arrested in Turkey.

The report also said the Dutch Embassy in Ankara was closely watching Geerdink’s detainment.

Geerdink was first detained in Diyarbakır in January at a time that coincided with the visit of Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders, who had harshly criticized the journalist’s detainment.

A lawsuit was opened against Geerdink on charges of producing “terrorist propaganda” on behalf of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) however she was acquitted of those charges in April.

Geerdink has been working in Turkey since 2006 and has been in Diyarbakır for three years.

Turkish police arrest more journalists on alleged terror charges

September 2, 2015 By administrator

Turkish police have raided the Ankara-based offices of a media group critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a day after two British reporters were jailed on controversial terror charges, The Guardian reports.

The raids on Koza-Ipek Media sparked fresh concern about press freedom in Turkey, which is gearing for snap legislative elections in November, the second in five months.

Six people were arrested and a warrant issued for the conglomerate’s chief executive, Akin Ipek, who was thought to be in Britain, the state-run Anatolia news agency said, according to The Guardian.

The raid on Tuesday, September 1, came a day after a court in Turkey’s Kurdish-dominated southeast ordered two British journalists working for US-based Vice News to be remanded in custody on terror charges.

Speaking on Kanalturk on Tuesday, Ipek denounced the operation as “baseless” and “funny”, adding: “If they [police] are able to find even a cent of illicit money I am ready to hand my company over to them.”

Ali Haydar Konca, Turkey’s new EU affairs minister from the Pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), said the raids “cannot be justified”.

“I’m worried that operations targeting the media will create great concern across the world about the state of democracy in Turkey,” he added.

Erdogan sues visually impaired journalist for second time

August 25, 2015 By administrator

Journalist Cüneyt Arat (L) and the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (R). (Photo: Cihan)

Cüneyt Arat, an Adana-based visually impaired journalist, tweeted on Monday that he has been sued for the second time by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for having allegedly insulted him.

In June, Arat shared a photo of a court document notifying him that he had been sued by Erdoğan. “I’m not at all sorry to be sued by you, @rt_erdogan. You are suing a disabled person the age of your grandchildren,” Arat tweeted. He later shared a photo of himself with Erdoğan, and wrote: “Once you loved me, you praised me. Now you are suing me.”

According to Monday’s tweets, Arat is charged with insulting the president, and may face up to four years in prison. He stated that he has been asked to attend hearings on Dec. 21 and Oct. 14 for the first and second cases, respectively.

Arat also claimed that senior officials from the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) offered by phone to “make him rich” if he publicly apologized to Erdoğan. He said he refused, and will continue to be a voice for people with disabilities.

Denying that he has ever insulted Erdoğan, either on Twitter or in his reporting, Arat argued that he has the right to criticize a president who is constitutionally bound, and who has publicly vowed, to be politically impartial, but who instead organized rallies to support the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) before the June 7 general election.

Journalists and public figures who are critical of Erdoğan and the AK Party have been targeted by police and prosecutors with the same charge, which is widely considered to be a new method of intimidating political opponents.

Dozens, including journalists Sedef Kabaş, Hidayet Karaca and Mehmet Baransu, as well as high school students, activists and even Merve Büyüksaraç, a former Miss Turkey, have been prosecuted for having allegedly insulted Erdoğan on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

In April, the international advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Turkey to end prosecutions for insulting public officials, criticizing the increasing number of criminal cases, some filed against minors, in the country.

Source: Zaman

Journalists’ Federations condemn Azerbaijani colleague’s murder

August 11, 2015 By administrator

The European Federation of Journalists and the International Federation of Journalists issued a statement expressing deep indignation at the death of Rasim Aliyev, Contact.az reports.

“The climate of impunity for violent acts against journalists and human rights defenders in Azerbaijan may encourage some individuals to commit such grave crimes without being punished. Journalists, like every citizen, in Azerbaijan must be free to share their personal comments on social networks without fear of receiving threats from anybody. The country must also stop its permanent prosecution against journalists and release all of them in order to decrease the current tensions,” said Mogens Blicher Bjerregård, EFJ President.

The statement also called for measures to release the arrested journalists, and stop pressure against them.

The Institute for Reporters’ Freedom also condemned the murder, considering the result of an unprecented government pressure.

“Rasim Aliyev’s murder took place amidst the backdrop of a crushing, unbearable human rights situation in Azerbaijan. Since mid-2014, the government has stopped the work of all independent non-governmental organizations and confiscated their property, and thrown countless human rights defenders who are critical of the government behind bars,” it says in a statement referring further to other acts of persecution against journalist and human rights activists in the country (including Khadija Ismayilova, Leyla and Arif Yunus etc).

“Human rights defenders, journalists, dissidents, and even representatives of international governmental organization and diplomatic missions in Azerbaijan operate in under pervasive, increasingly intrusive surveillance. One day prior to Rasim Aliyev’s murder, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Communications revealed plans to propose legislation that will increase government control and surveillance over online apps such as WhatsApp and Skype, and to require online social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to maintain databases of Azerbaijan-based users which the government has access to. Through Rasim Aliyev’s murder the Azerbaijan government will further attempt to justify all-encompassing internet surveillance and regulation,” reads the organization’s call.

Arrested Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova wins US National Press Club award

July 30, 2015 By administrator

RFE/RL Editor in Chief Nenad Pejic had nominated the Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova for the US National Press Club’s Press Freedom Award, and she won it, Azerbaijani information agency Turan reports.

According to the report, the award ceremony was held in Washington on July 29. Journalists and editors in chief attended the annual ceremony to celebrate one of the most prestigious press freedom awards, and support their colleagues in jail. “We will not stop fighting for these journalists until they are free and able to do their jobs,” John Hughes, the president of the US National Press Club, said

Ismayilova has been held in pretrial detention in a Baku prison for 234 days on charges many observers link to her investigations of high-level corruption involving Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, RFE/RL writes.

During the first trial on Ismayilova’s case on July 24, the judge rejected motions to dismiss the criminal case on charges of tax evasion and embezzlement, and to grant Ismayilova house arrest as a substitute for pretrial detention. In case Ismayilova is found guilty, she may face up to 19 years in prison, according to RFE/RL.

“Khadija is in prison because of her journalism…This award is an acknowledgement of her courage and her convictions, but it is also a call to all of us here tonight to condemn her imprisonment and demand her freedom,” Nenaj Pejic, RFE/RL editor in chief, said.

On 5 December 2014, the well-known Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova was detained after being questioned at the prosecutor’s office. Baku Sabail District Court made a decision to detain her on charges of incitement to suicide. The arrest of Ismayilova has been followed by a wave of condemning statements by a number of international organizations and influential representatives from various states. Protests have been organized in her support in various countries; and prominent international outlets released articles covering the topic. However, on 13 February 2015, the Grave Crimes Investigation Department of Azerbaijan Prosecutor General’s Office charged the journalist under articles 179.3.2 (large-scale appropriation), 192.2.2 (illegal entrepreneurship with large income) and 308.2 (abuse of power with grave consequences) of Criminal Code of Azerbaijan. The journalist was fined while in jail. She faces up to 12 years in prison. In early April, Azerbaijani journalist Tural Mustafayev – under whose complaint Khadija Ismayilova had been arrested last December – wrote a letter to Zakir Garalov, the Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan, saying that he wanted to withdraw his appeal. When asked why he had lodged an accusation, Mustafa told the journalist that he was under emotional stress in that period.

Turkish daily fires senior journalist over tweet blaming Erdogan over ISIL

July 23, 2015 By administrator

Kadri Gursel, journalist for the Turkish Milliyet daily, who has been fired over a tweet critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s policy on ISIL.

A leading Turkish newspaper has sacked one of its most senior commentators over his tweet criticizing President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s policies, which the journalist said, gave rise to the Takfiri ISIL terrorist group.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Milliyet daily said that Kadri Gursel had been fired because his remarks on his social media post were “incompatible” with the paper’s editorial policies.

In a tweet posted on Wednesday, Gursel accused Erdogan of being behind the rise of the ISIL, adding that it was shameful that world leaders were offering their condolences to him for a recent deadly bomb blast in the southern Turkish town of Suruc, reportedly claimed by the extremist terror group. “It’s embarrassing that foreign leaders call the person who is the number one cause of the IS (ISIL) terror in Turkey to present their condolences for Suruc,” Gursel said.

The July 20 explosion in Suruc, located near the Syrian border, killed 32 people and injured more than 100 people.

The explosion targeted people from the Socialist Youth Associations Federation, also known as the SGDF, who had gathered at a cultural center before their journey to Kobani, also called Ayn al-Arab, to help in the restructuring of the war-torn Syrian town.

The anti-Erdogan tweet came as Turkey has been criticized for clamping down on journalists and sentencing them to long prison terms.

Ankara has also been widely accused of supporting the Takfiri ISIL militants operating in Syria as part of a broader Western plot for the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Many media reports have recently revealed Ankara’s role in providing support to the terror groups active in Syria.

Last month, center-left Turkish daily Cumhuriyet released a video implicating the country’s National Intelligence Organization (MİT) in assisting the notorious Takfiri group.

Erdogan said Cumhuriyet would pay a “heavy price” for publishing the video, prompting international media rights group Reports Without Borders to slam the Turkish leader for threatening journalists.

On June 12, Turkish newspaper Today’s Zaman also revealed that Ankara allows ISIL terrorists to freely walk in the streets of the Akcakale border district in Sanliurfa.

Turkish Journalist Fatih Yağmur receives EU journalism award for exposing MİT truck news

June 29, 2015 By administrator

The Best Investigative Report of 2014 award was given to Yağmur from Radikal or his article exposing the guns and munitions sent to Syria by the MİT.

Fatih Yağmur was awarded the Best Investigative Report of 2014 at the EU Investigative Journalism Awards on Monday for his article exposing the guns and munitions sent to Syria by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), which was published in the Radikal daily on Jan. 3, 2014.

Three journalists from Turkey were honored with awards at the first EU Investigative Journalism Awards that is funded by the European Union in conjunction with the South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM). The aim of the awards is to reward the investigative journalistic work in seven EU-Enlargement countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey.

Original investigative reports in 2014 that had significant social impact in Turkey were awarded during the ceremony that was organized by the Platform for Independent Journalism (P24) in İstanbul and which was well attended by journalists, representatives of various media organizations, diplomats and academics.

In his opening remarks P24’s Andrew Finkel said: “All too often brave and courageous journalists in Turkey are punished. Tonight they are being rewarded.”

The awards were based on votes by an independent jury, chaired by Professor Yasemin İnceoğlu and comprising Professor Arzu Kihtir, Tuğrul Eryılmaz, Hasan Cemal and Cengiz Çandar.

The Best Investigative Report of 2014 award was given to Yağmur from Radikal as “the subject matter — trucks laden with weapons en route to Syria owned by the country’s national intelligence agency — continues to have repercussions. The story is the product of pure investigative journalism at the highest international standards,” the jury said.

Nurettin Kurt was awarded the Second Best Investigative Report of 2014 for his report “Official car [for Religious Affairs Directorate president] cost TL1 million,” published in Hürriyet on Dec. 13, 2014. The jury said that the fact that the official in question returned the vehicle allocated for his use following public discussion as a result of the article gives the report a unique value.

Third place for the Best Investigative Report of 2014 went to Tahir Alperen for his report titled “Bullets that killed two police not fired from weapons belonging to four people shot dead,” published on t24.com.tr on Nov. 4, 2014.

The report was on the murder of two police chiefs in the southeastern province of Bingöl in October of last year. Shortly after the attack, then-Interior Minister Efkan Ala announced that four of the alleged assailants were killed in clashes after the assault. However, it was later revealed that the killed suspects had nothing to with the killing of the two police chiefs in Bingöl.

“This story certainly deserves a prize as its writer has gotten hold of documents that will likely change the course of a criminal investigation regarding the murder of two police officers,” the jury stated in its rationale.

According to information on P24’s website, investigative stories that contribute to transparency and report on societal issues related to abuse of power and fundamental rights, corruption and organized crime that otherwise would not have been brought to the public’s attention qualify for the award.

ECHR rules Baku must pay € 14,000 over violation of journalist’s rights

June 19, 2015 By administrator

On June 18, the European Court of Human Rights ruled a judgment in the case “Mehdiyev against Azerbaijan.”

As Tert.am reports citing contact.az, the Court revealed a violation of Hakimeldostu Mehdiyev’s rights, maltreatment, imprisonment by the Ministry of National Security of Nakhchivan for his journalistic activities.

The reason for the persecution became Mehdiyev’s publication about violation of citizens’ rights in 2007, after which he was summoned to the local office of the National Security Ministry, where they started beating him with truncheons, demanding to stop his journalistic activity. After that, he was taken to court and arrested for 15 days for resisting police. While in custody, he was refused food and water, and was released without explanation in 4 days.

The authorities have not acknowledged the arrest of Mehdiyev.

The European Court ruled that the government of Azerbaijan is obliged to pay Mehdiyev 10,000 euros as compensation and 4,000 euros for legal and other expenses.

Tert.am. Azerbaijan loses another case in at ECHR

Turkey’s AKP ‘pushes away’ journalists to stop leaks

June 11, 2015 By administrator

By Selçuk Şenyüz – ANKARA,

One of the first policy decisions of Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) after the June 7 general election has been “pushing away” journalists to prevent leaks as coalition talks linger.

Sources told daily Hürriyet that Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu was infuriated over the remarks of some ministers who spoke to the media after a party meeting on June 8. As a response, the party administration instructed ministers to not answer journalists’ questions as they left internal meetings.

On the morning of June 11, cameramen, who were routinely placed at the entrance of the AKP’s headquarters in Ankara, were sent by officials farther away to parking spots on a sidewalk across the road.

The AKP is continuing talks with other parties on forming a coalition, after it unexpectedly lost its parliamentary majority in the June 7 polls.

Under Erdogan dictatorship Journalist Baransu faces 52 years in jail for coverage of MGK report

June 4, 2015 By administrator

Journalist Mehmet Baransu was arrested early in March on charges of obtaining classified state documents. (Photo: Today’s Zaman, Kürşat Bayhan)

Journalist Mehmet Baransu, who was indicted for publishing classified documents from a 2004 National Security Council (MGK) meeting during which council members had discussed an action plan targeting the faith-based Gülen movement, is facing a prison term of 52 years, with the first hearing of his trial taking place at an İstanbul court on Wednesday.

The MGK document dated Aug. 25, 2004 persuades the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government to implement a series of measures to curb the activities of the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement. It advises the government to adopt legal measures that would impose harsh penalties on Gülen-affiliated institutions.

Immediately after Baransu’s report was published in the Taraf daily on Nov. 28, 2013, the Prime Ministry, the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and the MGK filed a joint criminal complaint against the daily and Baransu for revealing confidential state documents. The complaint immediately turned into an investigation into the journalist, with Baransu facing charges of acquiring confidential documents crucial to state security, revealing information that is forbidden from being publicized and political and military espionage.

The first hearing of the trial was held at the Anatolia 10th High Criminal Court on Wednesday. Baransu, who is currently under arrest in Silivri Prison as a result of another investigation, did not attend the hearing.

Baransu was arrested by the İstanbul 5th Penal Court in March over documents he had submitted to prosecutors regarding the Sledgehammer (Balyoz) coup plot against the government in 2010.

Since November 2013, Taraf has published several confidential documents suggesting that the ruling AK Party and MİT have been profiling individuals linked to various religious and faith-based groups, mainly the Gülen movement, inspired by Turkish-Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. The party confirmed the authenticity of the documents but argued that no action was taken to implement the policy prescriptions indicated therein.

In the indictment, the prosecutor’s office said although the entire contents of the Aug. 25, 2004 MGK meeting was required to be kept confidential, Baransu covered it on the front page of the newspaper, thus openly violating laws that provide a shield of secrecy for MGK meetings and documents.

In addition to Baransu, Taraf’s then-managing editor Murat Şevki Çoban is also implicated for his role in allowing Baransu’s story to be published. Çoban is also facing a prison term of 52 years.

Delivering his defense statement, Çoban said the report should be interpreted within the scope of press freedom. Stating that the exposure of a crime does not constitute a crime, Çoban sought his acquittal.

In the meantime, Baransu testified to a prosecutor at the İstanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan on Thursday based on a complaint by Esat Burak Uzundere, the user of pro-government Twitter troll account Esat Ç, known for posting insulting and inflammatory messages targeting people who do not support the AK Party.

Uzundere’s complaint was based on a Twitter post by Baransu on him on the grounds that Baransu had violated his privacy.

In one of his earlier tweets, Baransu revealed Esat Ç’s real identity as Uzundure, which was later confirmed by a court, and exposed his link to the AK Party.

Meanwhile, Baransu’s lawyer and family members were disappointed and upset that the journalist was taken to Çağlayan on Thursday, the only day that they are allowed to have an open visit.

Baransu’s lawyer Sercan Sakallı said the journalist had been taken to the courthouse while his family was waiting for an open visit with him in Silivri.

As he was being taken to courthouse, Baransu spoke to reporters waiting in the corridors of the courthouse, stating he has been kept in isolation for 98 days and that he is preparing his defense under difficult circumstances in prison.

The prosecution of journalist for their work or because of their criticisms of the government or President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has become almost a daily occurrence in Turkey, with dozens of them facing charges of insulting a state official or conducting terrorist propaganda.

Most recently, Cumhuriyet Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar is facing an aggravated life sentence as a result of a criminal complaint filed by Erdoğan on Tuesday for the publication of images that prove that arms were transferred to Syria by MİT.

The images contradict the government’s earlier claim that the trucks were only carrying humanitarian aid to Turkmens in the war-torn country.

Last week, journalist Erkam Tufan Aytav, who works for Bugün TV, testified to İstanbul Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor Fuzuli Aydoğdu as a suspect at the İstanbul Courthouse. Aytav did not give any information about the content of the investigation because it was confidential.

On the same day, another journalist, Aytekin Gezici, was also in court at the first hearing of a trial launched against him over charges of insulting President Erdoğan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç and former Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ on social media.

In addition, journalists Mirgün Cabas, Koray Çalışkan and Banu Güven as well as TV host Pelin Batu were summoned by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office last week to testify as part of an investigation into their social media posts regarding the killing of a public prosecutor during a hostage crisis at the İstanbul Courthouse on March 31. The journalists are accused of conducting propaganda for a terrorist organization in their tweets on the day the prosecutor was killed.

Journalists facing legal action in Turkey today are just not limited to these figures, with dozens more who are either in prison or prosecuted.

Samanyolu Broadcasting Group General Manager Hidayet Karaca was taken into custody on Dec. 14, 2014 as part of a government-backed police operation. Karaca was later arrested and remains in prison on suspicion of being a member of an armed organization. The charges against him are based on a fictional TV series that was broadcast a few years ago.

Sedef Kabaş, a TV presenter, is facing a prison sentence of up to five years for posting a tweet about a corruption probe involving high-profile individuals.

Source: Zaman