Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG) announced its report on rights violations against journalists in February. The report that focusses on the challenges of doing journalism in Turkey, emphasized that conditions for performing the profession is getting harder on a daily basis.

 

Mentioning the detention of journalists following the refugees on the Greek border, the report said, "As the public has witnessed recently, journalists face a thousand obstacles while working on the field. What happened in Edirne is a clear example. Following the refugee policy that Turkey changed, the journalist following up on the refugees trying to cross the border to Greece were taken into custody, their equipments were confiscated and they were prevented from working.

 

'ARRESTED BECAUSE OF THEIR WORK AS A JOURNALIST'

 

Emphasizing that there are more than 100 journalists behind bars in Turkey, the report said: "In addition to these, the worst is the journalists in prison. There are more than 100 journalists in prisons. Recently Near East News Editor-in-Chief Alptekin Dursunoğlu was arrested and put in prison. Again, Odatv Managing Editor Barış Terkoğlu and reporter Hülya Kılınç was arrested and put in prison because of a report they prepared. Access to Odatv was banned."

 

INTIMIDATING THE JOURNALISTS

 

In the GDF report it was stated that the journalists are punished for varios reasons and as a result both their right to work and the peoples' right to recieve news are being violated, it was said: "Tens of journalists are kept waiting at the gates of the courtrooms. We know that they are trying to intimidate the journalists. However, those who rule should know that, the people who are actually journalists will not be intimidated with these policies."

 

DFG raporunda gazetecilerin yargılandıkları davalardan çeşitli gerekçelerle cezalara çarpıtılarak hem çalışma haklarının ellerinden alındığı hem de halkın haber alma hakkının engellediği ifade edilerek, “Yine yargılanan onlarca gazeteci, mahkeme kapılarında süründürülmeye çalışılmaktadır. Çeşitli bahanelerle hapishanelerde tutulan gazetecilere bu yolla gözdağı verilmek istendiğini bilmekteyiz. Ancak, iktidar sahiplerinin de bilmesi gerekir ki, gerçek manada gazetecilik yapanlar bu yıldırma politikalarına pabuç bırakmaz” diye belirtildi. 

 

Here is the summary of the report of rights violations against journalists prepared by DFG:

 

“* Journalists detained: 12

* Journalists arrested: 1

* Journalists attacked: 3

* Journalists who are being investigated: 2

* Journalists who were sued: 1

* Journalists whose prison sentences approved: 6

(11 years 5 months 17 days and 6 thousand TL fine to 5 journalists, 6 thousand 80 TL fine for one journalist)

* Journalists whose trials are pending: 15 cases, 71 journalists

* Internet Access Barrier: 1 (JinNews Agency)

* Censored Journalists: 2

* Number of Journalists imprisoned: 111