Turkey: A Story Of Solidarity And Sisterhood From Ankara To Diyarbakır
Location: Turkey, İstanbul
Date: June 21, 2022Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
By Ceren İskit, Research Coordinator
A visit to Diyarbakır along with the Turkish Press, Broadcasting, and Printer Workers' Union (Disk Basın-İş) in support of 16 Kurdish journalists recently jailed pre-trial was one of the hardest and the greatest experiences I have ever had in my life. Turkey is among the most difficult countries for women journalists to work in and I was representing the Coalition For Women In Journalism on a trip calling attention to the state’s latest act of aggression against the independent press.
On June 8, the Diyarbakır Police detained 20 Kurdish journalists and media workers after simultaneous raids at their homes and offices. A week later, 16 of them, including four women journalists, were sent to prison pre-trial. We still do not know the charges against them or the conditions they have been through so far.
On June 17, the CFWIJ joined Disk Basın-İş’s call to visit Diyarbakır to extend solidarity with the imprisoned journalists. The 20 hours-long journey started from İstanbul, continued in Ankara, and ended in Diyarbakır. With journalists, Elif Akgül, Sultan Eylem Keleş, Tolga Balcı, Fatih Aça, İsa Uğur Erdoğan, Serpil Ünal, Anıl Olcan, Dilek Gül from İstanbul, and Sibel Yükler, Derya Okatan from Ankara, we aimed to raise awareness on how journalists face legal persecution solely for doing their job and how state-backed legal harassment threatens journalists.
On the way to Diyarbakır, we were stopped twice at Kayseri and near Diyarbakır by the police for an ID check. Journalists coming from İstanbul were also questioned on the purpose of our visit and police took pictures of the bus before allowing it to enter Diyarbakır. When we arrived in the city at around 6.00 AM on June 18, we found police officials waiting for us. The police followed our every step from when we got off the bus till when we boarded it again.
Our first visit was to the Dicle Fırat Journalist’s Association (DFG) in Diyarbakır. DFG’s co-chairperson Dicle Müftüoğlu and Platform of Mesopotamian Women Journalists’ representative Roza Metina hosted us during our visit and their hospitality was absolutely splendid.
A week before the detentions of 20 Kurdish journalists, police raided Dicle’s home and called her in for questioning. She was detained for four days on allegations of terror financing after she sent money to journalists Nedim Türfent and Ziya Ataman, who are both serving prison terms for alleged membership in terrorist groups. She was eventually released with judicial control measures imposed on her.
After a breakfast of Diyarbakır’s traditional bread, as journalists, activists, lawyers, and rights defenders, we discussed strategies to raise awareness on the unlawful detention and imprisonment of Kurdish journalists. The meeting called attention to increasing police overreaches against the press and state-backed legal harassment of journalists. We concluded the meeting with various to-do lists to prevent journalists from being ignored by the press freedom organizations. Because Turkey's west still ignores the Kurdish journalists’ existence and even argues against their journalistic activities.
The southeastern part of Turkey has been under an unofficial state of emergency for decades because of clashes between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a pro-Kurdish militant group and the Turkish army. Kurdish media has been affected since then, and they have been facing severe threats, state-linked pressure and more. The latest wave of arbitrary detentions is only one example of how the law is weaponized against Kurdish journalists. Many journalists face baseless charges due to their work, with courts handing down convictions after long drawn out trials.
Our second stop was the JİNNEWS office which was raided on June 8, 2022. JİNNEWS is the only news agency with all-female reporters in the country and has been on the radar of the Turkish state for quite some time. Not surprisingly, their reporters are at constant risk of detention and legal harassment by the state.
The number of the police officials tailing us increased as we headed to the JİNNEWS offices, and of course, they continued surveilling us there as well. The editor of JİNNEWS, Beritan Canözer, talked about the police raid on the office. She said that police officers came to the agency for "address determination" two days before the simultaneous raids. Beritan said the police broke the door when they stormed the JİNNEWS office on June 8. She added that two laptops, one desk computer and five hard drives were seized by the police during the raid. JİNNEWS lodged a criminal complaint after the raid and the official damage assessment report is yet awaited.
When I asked reporter Şirin Çınar about the threats women journalists face in Diyarbakır, her answer was quite alarming. She said the police are constantly following journalists everywhere they go. Women journalists working in the field are always facing harassment, they are physically assaulted and targeted. From ID checks to forced body searches, Şirin said that female reporters endure every type of threat. “When you look at Turkey’s conditions now, you do not only face challenges as a female journalist. Being a woman is enough for us to suffer from these difficulties,” Şirin said.
Speaking on the importance of women's empowerment Beritan said women's solidarity should grow. She also drew attention to Turkey’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention that has had a negative impact for female journalists. Considering the state pressure, the situation becomes twice as hard.
When we reached our final stop to stage a protest against the arrests, police presence doubled in the area. Two water cannons, one armored vehicle and at least four police vans were waiting for us when we arrived there. When we started our speeches about the16 imprisoned journalists, there were three times as many police officials as the number of protestors on ground. I proudly represented the CFWIJ and highlighted how press freedom violations have reached alarming levels in Turkey.
In my speech, I shared the current situation in Turkey and sent our message to our imprisoned colleagues: “Unfortunately, we are going through very dark days for press freedom. The pressure on journalists alarmingly escalates and that is why we are here to extend our solidarity to 16 imprisoned journalists who are arrested with baseless charges. We are here, especially for our four imprisoned sisters. In 2022 alone, Turkey ranked first in violations of press freedom. Women journalists are either sued, arrested, or prosecuted on charges of “propaganda" or “being affiliated with a terror organization”. However, these women journalists only carry out real journalism and seek the truth. We came from Ankara to say they are not alone and I reiterate one thing only that journalism is not a crime and free press cannot be silenced.”
Press freedom is in dire straits in Turkey. We must unite to counter it. The controversial "disinformation bill" is still on the parliament’s agenda. In Turkey's western cities journalists are subjected to legal harassment on trumped up criminal charges to deter them from their work and in the southern cities they are arbitrarily arrested. Therefore, neither the heat of Diyarbakır nor the constant surveillance by the police prevented us from defending our truth.
We are journalists who do journalism in line with universal principles. We always keep following the truth and report for the public good. Like our colleagues in Diyarbakır, we will continue to stand with all journalists who have been unfairly prosecuted, threatened and subjected to violence. We at least own them to say that they are not alone and extend our solidarity.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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