Turkey surpasses Iran in imprisoning journalists

Study finds Turkey surpasses Iran, China with 57 jailed journalists; reporters can be imprisoned for up to 3 years before trials begin.

Fifty-seven journalists are imprisoned in Turkey, and between 700 and 1,000 court trials which could result in the imprisonment of more journalists are underway, according to a study from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Furthermore, the International Press Institute stated that Turkey is now the country with the most imprisoned journalists, surpassing Iran and China. As of December, 34 journalists in both of those nations were jailed.

Dunja Mijatović, the OSCE’s representative on freedom of the media, wrote a letter to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu stating that the report, released last week, was intended to demonstrate that Turkey is in need of legislative reforms to protect journalists, for which she offered the assistance of her office.

The Vienna-based OSCE, an international security organization consisting of 56 member states including Turkey, noted most journalists imprisoned in Turkey are sentenced under two articles of Turkey’s anti-terrorism law and an article of the country’s criminal code. The articles in question relate to assisting, establishing or commanding armed terror organizations or creating propaganda for such groups.

“Media outlets reporting about sensitive issues are often regarded by the authorities as the publishing organs of illegal organizations,” the report stated. “Writing about sensitive issues, including issues of terrorism or anti-government activities, is often considered as supporting those issues.”

Ferai Tinc, chair of IPI’s committee on Turkey and an IPI board member, stated that Turkey’s anti-terrorism law “threatens press freedom in Turkey” in an IPI commentary about the OSCE report. He added, “We have asked the government to change this law, but, unfortunately, the government does not listen to the voices of professional journalism organizations.”

The OSCE’s study also noted that journalists in Turkey can be imprisoned for up to three years before their trials begin, and journalists can also face multiple court trials, with one reporter possibly having to undergo 150 trials. The longest sentence a Turkish journalist has received is 166 years in jail, and the longest sentence sought by prosecutors has been 3,000 years’ imprisonment.

The OSCE report also stated that journalists are imprisoned in high-security prisons alongside the most dangerous types of criminals. If cases are classified as secret by the Turkish government, even the journalists’ defense attorneys cannot obtain access to trial documents. The OSCE was unable to confirm details about certain journalists’ cases for that reason.

A compilation of imprisoned Turkish journalists and information about their cases, which accompanied the report, was prepared by Erol Önderoğlu, editor-in-chief of the Istanbul-based BIANET Independent Communications Network.

“The OSCE commitments stress that everyone has the right to freedom of expression,” Mijatović said in a statement. “The OSCE commitments stress that everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right includes freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority.”

Turkey reaffirmed its commitment to freedom of expression at the OSCE’s summit last year in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Source: The Jerusalem Post