Turkey: During The Tenth Hearing Of Isminaz Temel And Havva Cuştan, Travel Bans Still Not Lifted Citing Journalists In Exile
Location: Turkey, Istanbul
Date: September 23, 2020Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
The tenth hearing of the case where ETHA editor İsminaz Temel and Havva Cuştan along with 21 others are charged with “membership of terror organization” and “propaganda of terror organization” was held today. While the journalists didn’t attend the hearing, the request of their lawyers for lifting of judicial control measures and travel ban was refused. The judge ironically cited journalist Can Dündar who is now in exile, stating “those who will not get acquitted of charges carry the risk of running to exile”, almost admitting that the court did not have any intentions to acquit the journalists of the charges.
İsminaz Temel and her co-worker in the ETHA, Havva Cuştan were arrested and imprisoned on October 25, 2017 following a raid on their houses on October 19, 2017. The journalists were charged with “being a member of and propagandizing for the illegal Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP).” citing their journalistic activities, the funerals they attended and the social media posts they shared. Havva and İsminaz who are facing upto 20 years imprisonment were released on July 18, 2018 and February 14, 2019 respectively on the condition of application of judicial control mechanisms and travel bans.
In her initial deposition Havva Cuştan had stated, “I am a journalist, I do news coverage everyday, we are side by side with the police forces everyday, I was taken into custody with my press card burnt, I find it unlawful. I would have immediately been there if I had been summoned for deposition. I also reject that the police that raided my house, threatened me with rape and made me listen to racist songs present in this court room today.” One of the “accusations” against Havva was for attending funerals of those who died in an ISIS attack in Suruç. “Turkey claims to fight against ISIS but it is not the ISIS militants who are standing before trial, it is me who attended the funerals of the victims as a journalist. I would attend those funerals as a civilian too and they should not be considered as a crime.” Havva also stated that the funeral was not her “only crime” if those activities are criminal activities and said that she was there for the miners who died in Soma mining accident, she was there during Gezi protests and that she loved her job.
As for the journalist İsminaz Temel, she stated that her photographs which were taken during the demonstrations and added to the file as evidence against her are actually evidence that she was doing journalism: “It is me who is shown in the photographs included in the file prepared by the Police Department. I was doing news coverage at the scene as a journalist with my press card, with my camera and my news notebook in my hand. If the photograph is paid careful attention, it can be seen that I was there personally for news.”
İsminaz Temel had also told the court that she was accused because of the line of the agency she worked for: “We are journalists who do not submit under pressure. ETHA, which I work as an editor, is part of the tradition of the free press in this country following the footsteps of journalists who paid high prices to ensure that journalism is not a crime . I indeed attended all these events and you can see in police camera footage that I have a camera on my neck and a notebook in my neck. However in a free country attending such events as a civilian should be considered within the confines of freedom of expression regardless.”
While the hearing is adjourned to February 18, 2021 The Coalition For Women In Journalism pays respects to İsminaz Temel and Havva Cuştan who hold freedom of the press in Turkey to such high regard. We demand that all charges against the journalists are dropped and that Turkish judiciary conducts the proceeding independently and impartially.
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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.
Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ. Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org
The Coalition For Women In Journalism closely monitors the incidents in Turkey with great concern. Since March 8, Women's Day, police violence against women journalists increasingly continues in the country. As the coalition, we urge the Turkish state to provide a free environment for journalists. Following the news is our most fundamental democratic right to report. We demand the immediate release of our detained colleagues. Journalism is not a crime. Journalism cannot be prevented.
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