Press freedom groups condemn Turkish media crackdown
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Version 0 of 1. Three leading press freedom bodies have condemned the Turkish government’s crackdown on the media following the failed coup. The UN special rapporteur on the right to freedom of expression, David Kaye; the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s representative on media freedom, Dunja Mijatović; and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have called on the Turkish authorities to reconsider their actions. Dozens of journalists have been arrested and several media outlets closed in the course of past two days by order of the government headed by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. A decree published in Turkey’s official gazette demanded the closure of more than 100 broadcasters, newspapers, magazines, publishing houses and distribution companies. These include three news agencies, 16 TV channels, 23 radio channels, 45 papers and 15 magazines. Arrest warrants have been issued against 89 journalists, access has been blocked to more than 20 news websites, the licences of 29 publishing houses have been revoked, and a number of press accreditations have been cancelled. In a joint statement, Kaye and Mijatović said: “The simultaneous arrests of independent journalists and shutdowns of print and broadcast media strike a major blow against public debate and government accountability. “We strongly urge the Turkish authorities to reconsider these decisions and confirm their obligations to media freedom.” Mijatović said: “It is quite clear that this wave of restrictions against media groups does not meet the basic international standards concerning restrictive measures even in times of emergency. “The disregard for any assurance of due process is flagrant and only contributes to the extreme levels of insecurity affecting all those working to inform people of the ongoing crisis in the country.” Kaye agreed: “The attempted coup cannot justify such a broad attack against almost all voices, not just critical ones but analytic and journalistic. “The widespread and abrupt nature of the measures, lacking even the basic elements of due process, is shocking and unprecedented in recent times in Turkey.” The CPJ’s programme coordinator for central Asia, Nina Ognianova, said: “The scale of this rout of the media is staggering... the government is exploiting a failed coup to silence the critical press when Turkey most needs pluralistic media.” This crackdown on media has been accompanied by the closing down of numerous academic institutions, schools and civil society organisations under edicts issued after the 23 July adoption of the state of emergency decree. See also this article, “Turkey must treat media freedom for what it really is – a test of democracy”, by Dunja Mijatović. |