NEWS CENTER - In the indictment prepared against 18 journalists, 15 of whom are imprisoned in Amed(Diyarbakır), on the allegation of "being a member of a terrorist organization", the image archives of production companies, photographs and images downloaded from the Internet for programs, "confiscated" newspapers and books, and payments made for programs were made the subject of accusation.

 

As part of the investigation carried out by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, 22 people, including 20 journalists, were detained in house raids on June 8, 2022. The journalists were transferred to the courthouse on June 16 after being detained in the police headquarters for 8 days. The journalists, who are JINNEWS Director Safiye Alagaş, Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG) Co-chairperson Serdar Altan, Mesopotamia Agency (MA) editor Aziz Oruç, Xwebûn Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Mehmet Ali Ertaş and Zeynel Abidin Bulut, Ömer Çelik, Mazlum Doğan Güler, İbrahim Koyuncu, Neşe Toprak, Elif Üngür, Abdurrahman Öncü, Suat Doğuhan, Remziye Temel, Ramazan Geciken, Lezgin Akdeniz and Mehmet Şahin were arrested on charges of "being a member of a terrorist organization". Journalists Gülşen Koçuk, Esmer Tunç, Mehmet Yalçın and Kadir Bayram, and Feynaz Koçuk and İhsan Ergülen were released under judicial control.

 

 15 OF 18 JOURNALISTS ARE IMPRISONED

 

The indictment, consisting of 728 pages, was accepted by Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office against imprisoned journalists Abdurrahman Öncü, Aziz Oruç, Elif Üngür, İbrahim Koyuncu, Lezgin Akdeniz, Mazlum Güler, Mehmet Ali Ertaş, Neşe Toprak, Ömer Çelik, Ramazan Geciken, Remziye Temel, Serdar Altan, Suat Doğuhan, Zeynel Abidin Bulut and Mehmet Şahin, and Kadir Bayram, Esmer Tunç and Mehmet Yalçin, who are on trial pending trial. The hearing was set for 11 July by the Diyarbakır 4th High Criminal Court.

 

ALAĞAŞ'S FILE IS LEFT

 

Files against JINNEWs Editor-in-Chief Safiye Alağaş and journalist Gülşen Koçuk were separated by the decision of March 21. Feynaz Koçuk and İhsan Ergülen were not included in this indictment.

 

6 CHAPTERS INDICTMENT

 

The indictment consisted of 6 chapters. In the first chapter, as in many files, "KCK Agreement and press structure", in the second chapter information about the beginning of the investigation and the companies that were raided, in the third chapter the production works with the agency and the news and programs it serves to its subscribers, in the fourth chapter the news and programs directed to journalists. The allegations about the accusations, the evaluation of the evidence in the 5th chapter, and the results and demands in the 6th chapter.

 

In the second chapter of the indictment, witness statements about Sterk TV and Medyahaber TV and some visuals about their broadcast content were claimed, and it was claimed that the TVs had "organizational ties". The broadcasting of journalists' programs on current developments with some guests on TV was made the subject of accusation.

 

KNOWN WITNESS: KUDAY

 

The allegations regarding the TVs in question were based on the statements of Kezban Kuday, who testified in the file, many of which resulted in acquittal. The general statements of some anonymous witnesses and confessors about TV and the statements of journalists that they work in production companies were used as the basis for the accusations.

 

In the third part of the indictment, information on Pel, Piya and Ari Yapım productions, which were raided on June 8, 2022 and the "search" continued for 32 days, were included in the Trade Newspaper. It was alleged that journalists were instructed to prepare programs on current developments such as March 8 International Women's Day and the international conspiracy against PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan, pointing to the evaluations of the broadcast policies of the relevant TV and productions. The montage of news and discussion programs, the discussions on the use of kaje and logos to be used, the questions asked in programs such as Women's Look and the Voice of the Street, and the speeches made in the program flow were the subject of accusations in this section.

 

THE REASON FOR THE 32-DAY 'SEARCH' IS REVEALED

 

The purpose of the police, who settled in the building where Ari Yapım Production is located for 32 days under the name of "search" and did not allow the employees to enter the building, remained in the building all these days was revealed in the indictment. In the indictment, it is said: "STERK TV and MEDYA HABER TV servers, which constitute the majority of the indictment, were searched in the workplace named ARI Yapım Proksiyon with the D.İş decision of the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, by entering the remote desktop servers within the scope of CMK Article 134 by the Branch Office officers with cyber crimes. In the examination made on the data by downloading the digital data…” the data were displayed as belonging to the imprisoned journalists and the production company.

 

POST ARCHIVES

 

The agenda written VELOR, and the video archives of 3 production companies are among the accusations were the news notes of Ari Production. The images of the 7th Ordinary Congress of the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), the BDP Provincial Congress, the BDP Urfa rally, the Diyarbakır Middle East Women's Conference and the Free Women's Congress (KJA) conference dated May 31, 2013 were made the subject of accusations. The slogans and pennants in the aforementioned images were used as a justification for this accusation. In this section, the use of the phrase "Document in the Form of a Congress Book" regarding the DTK cover book drew attention.

 

In addition, images of the PKK's actions broadcast on Sterk TV and Medya Haber TV were included in the file. It was noteworthy that the photos of HPG members and information about their identity were also included in the indictment.

 

NO EVIDENCE BUT CRIMINAL!

 

The other part of the indictment included the statements of the journalists and the allegations against them. Regarding journalist Abdurrahman Öncü, it was claimed that "in the search made in the production companies, the evidence of the suspect's name was not found, but because the suspect was working as a cameraman, he participated in all the content produced by the production agencies". It was pointed out that Öncü did not participate in any statement, action or activity, and included the interviews he had made about the content of the programs. Öncü's "allegation of being a member of a terrorist organization" was based on the statements of secret witnesses.

 

NEWS STORIES ARE THE SUBJECT OF ACCUSATIONS

 

Aziz Oruç was accused of the "Voice of the Street" program he was presenting. The questions asked in the program, in which a microphone was extended to the citizens regarding current developments, were made the subject of accusations. In addition, it was claimed that the program was carried out by "organization orders". It was alleged that Oruç "insulted" President Erdoğan and made "propaganda for a terrorist organization" with the questions he asked. Interviews and news made by Oruç with some names regarding current developments were also made the subject of accusation. Among them was an interview with journalists in the Federated Kurdistan Region and PYD Co-chair Salih Muslim. Regarding Oruç, it was stated that "no criminal element was found in the suspect's open source research".

 

NEWROZ PRESENTATION CRIME

 

Elif Üngür was accused of her "Media-Culture" program. In the program, she was accused of using statements such as "There are only six days left until Newroz. Fires are lit in many centers and the resurrection day continues to be celebrated. We will open our bulletin with the Newroz anthem".

 

ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIPS

 

It was stated that Esmer Tunç has membership records in the Kurdish Writers Association, Dicle Fırat Journalists Association, Kurdish Literature Association and Mesopotamia Writers Association. It was claimed that Tunç was the cameraman and had direct links to all broadcasts. His conversations with his colleagues about the program contents were made the subject of accusation.

 

Other journalists were also accused of their programs, news content, HTS recordings, confiscated books, questions they asked in the programs, music and photographs on their phones and computers, news they made on various dates, interviews they made with guests for the programs, opening speeches of the program, and speeches spoken in the program.

 

ANONYMOUS WITHNESSES AND CONFESSORS

 

In the evaluation part of the indictment, it was claimed that the TVs in question "made propaganda for a terrorist organization and acted according to their aims". 6 secrets and 15 witnesses, including confessors, were used as a basis for the allegations.

  

In the conclusion part of the indictment, it was demanded that the journalists be punished for "being a member of a terrorist organization". It was also requested that the confiscated technical materials be "hidden" and that all judicial expenses be charged to journalists.