Turkey: We Welcome The Release Of Journalist Reyhan Hacioğlu
Location: Turkey, Istanbul
Date: June 28, 2019Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
On June 28, Turkish journalist of Kurdish descent Reyhan Hacıoğlu was released after being in custody for over a year.
She had been arrested by the authorities as an editor of pro-Kurdish newspaper Özgürlükçü Demokrasi, a successor of Özgür Gündem, which was shut down by the government in 2016 right after the attempted military coup attempt in April 2018.
On April 10, 2018, an Istanbul court ordered Reyhan Hacıoğlu to be detained pending the outcome of a trial, along with the other editors Mehmet Ali Çelebi and Hicran Ürün. All three journalists were accused of being members of a terrorist organization. The court order came after an early morning police raid on March 28, 2018, targeting the paper and the printing house, Gün Printing, that prints it.
In one of her letters that she sent from Bakırköy Women Prison, Reyhan mentions “The price of writing the truth and wanting a beautiful world for everyone is seven doors. Corridor, doors, doors, doors… There are seven doors between us,” she wrote, as reported by a local newspaper Evrensel.
In another pro-Kurdish media outlet Jin News, she says, “Truth has a very strong side that surpasses us… I know, it will continue to speak, even if we don’t… They say the beauty will save the world; no, the women will do.”
CFWIJ welcomes the release of journalist Reyhan Hacıoğlu and demands Turkish authorities for the same outcome for all the imprisoned women journalists. In an era when journalists are imprisoned with accusations of being members of a terrorist organization or disseminating propaganda just because of their work, freedom of speech hardly exists. As mentioned by Hacıoğlu, “truth will continue to speak even if we can not.” It can not be silenced through imprisonments, censors and attacks on journalists.The CFWIJ is committed to following up on all ongoing and pending cases of women journalists facing imprisonment in Turkey.
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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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