Turkey's crackdown on free expression

MEAA has written to the Turkish ambassador about the country's media crackdown as the case involving Ayse Celik begins. 

IFEX, the global network of more than 100 freedom of expression organisations including MEAA and the International Federation of Journalists, has called on Turkey to drop the charges against teacher Ms Ayşe Çelik, charged in April for her comments made on the Turkish television program Beyaz Show, and the 31 others that are now charged in the same case.

On 8 January 2016, Ms. Ayşe Çelik, a teacher from Diyarbakir, a Southeast province in Turkey, called in to Beyaz Show and spoke with host Beyazit Öztürk. Ms. Çelik pleaded for more media attention to killings and other abuse against civilians ongoing across southeast Turkey. “I can't even speak over the sounds of bombs and bullets… people are struggling with starvation and thirst, babies and children too. Don't remain silent,” said Çelik. Her comments led to harsh backlash on social media by pro-government media outlets, and the opening of an investigation against her on the charges of “promoting terrorist organisation propaganda”. The show's host Öztürk was also fined and forced to publicly apologize for not stopping Ms. Çelik from speaking.

In response to the criminalization of Ms. Çelik's speech, 30 people signed a copy of Ms. Çelik's statement, many of whom had recently travelled to or themselves lived in Diyarbakir, including Sanar Yurdatapan, spokesperson for IFEX member the Initiative for Free Expression-Turkey. The supporters visited prosecutors in Ankara, İstanbul and İzmir, supporting Ayşe's right to free expression by presenting themselves as 'accomplices' to her so-called crime.

On 26 April 2016, a case was opened against Çelik's supporters, and later merged with the cases against Ms. Çelik and Kadir Turnali, an executive at Kanal D, which hosts Beyaz Show. All were named as “traitors” and supporters of a “terrorist organisation”, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). On 23 September, all 32 individuals, including Ms. Çelik, will have their first hearing in the case, and face up to 7.5 years imprisonment if convicted.

MEAA also reiterated its concerns about Turkey's crackdown on the media since the attempted coup, noting that up to 100 journalists have been detained, more than 30 news web sites have been closed and up to 600 media personnel have had their accreditation withdrawn.

You can download MEAA's letter to Turkey's ambassador here.

Also, see IFEX's campaign here. See the IFJ's concerns about the media crackdown here. See the Committee to Protect Journalists crackdown chronicle here.