Turkey: Nazan Sala, Sehriban Abi, Zeynep Durgut Continue To Face Trial For Reporting On Van Military Violence As Court Adjourns Hearing
Location: Turkey, Van
Date: October 21, 2021Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
Lifting all judicial controls imposed on Nazan Sala, Sehriban Abi, Zeynep Durgat and two other journalists charged with “membership in a terrorist organization”, for reporting on two Van citizens tortured by the military, the court adjourned the hearing till January 6, 2022. At the third hearing of the case on Thursday, the Van 5th High Criminal Court denied the defence lawyers’ request to return the journalists’ seized equipment. The Coalition For Women In Journalism is relieved that judicial measures imposed on the journalists, who spent six months in pre-trial detention, have been lifted. However, we reiterate that journalism is not a crime. We demand that all fabricated charges against Jin News reporter Sehriban Abi, freelance journalist Nazan Sala and Mesopotamia Agency reporters Zeynep Durgat, Adnan Bilen and Cemil Uğur are immediately dropped. The CFWIJ vigilantly monitors violations against women journalists in Turkey and we urge the authorities to stop weaponizing the country’s terror laws against journalists.
Defence lawyers Murat Timur, Resul Temur, Ekin Yeter and Barış Oflas represented the journalists before the court on Thursday. Nazlan, Zeynep and Sehriban did not attend the hearing. Their counsels moved the court for the release of cameras and hard drives, which were seized when the defendants’ homes were raided before the trial began.
The court denied their request and sought a status report on the ongoing investigation against Nazan, who faces the additional charge of spreading “terror propaganda” and adjourned the hearing.
Shortly after they reported on the torture of Kurdish villagers Osman Şiban and Servet Turgut by military personnel in Van, the homes and offices of Sehriban and Nazan were raided. On the same day, October 6, 2020, they and two of their colleagues at Mesopotamia Agency were detained, and subsequently arrested three days later. It was nearly six months later, on April 2, 2021, that the arrested journalists were released.
The investigation thus far and the indictment imposed on them have focused on the journalists’ media outlets, phone calls and digital materials seized from their respective offices. The journalists have been indicted for being affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party and the Kurdistan Communities Union. The prosecution has argued that the affiliate media organizations of the defendants incite public hatred and undermine the state and its institutions by fabricating terrorist propaganda.
On trial for “membership in a terrorist organization”, the journalists face up to 15 years in prison. Nazan faces another 13 years for the charge of “spreading terror propaganda” through the press.
The military reportedly tortured citizens, Osman Şiban and Servet Turgut, in Van and threw them down from a national helicopter. Turgat succumbed to his injuries on September 30, 2020. Instead of taking action on the severe human rights violation against its own citizens, the state institutions initiated legal proceedings against journalists who reported the violation.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism has closely monitored the developments in the investigation against Sehriban, Nazan and Zeynep. Before their arrest was made official, Sehriban and Nazan were denied access to their lawyers while they were detained. In prison, their rights as inmates were violated on several occasions. They were tortured, held in unhygienic conditions and denied basic needs. The CFWIJ demands the immediate acquittal of the journalists who simply revealed the truth. No journalist should be persecuted for doing their jobs. We reiterate, journalism is not a crime.
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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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