Türkiye: Acclaimed Photojournalist Zeynep Kuray Obstructed from Covering Environmental Protest, Fined for ‘Trespassing’
The Coalition For Women In Journalism alarmed by authorities’ continuous harassment of the journalist.
Location: Türkiye, Akbelen
Date: July 26, 2023
While covering an environmental protest in Turkey’s Mugla Province, police arrest and fine renowned reporter Zeynep Kuray for trespassing. Since the Coalition for Women In Journalism started monitoring press freedom violations against women and LGBTQI journalists, we have recorded a staggering number of violations against Kuray, from arrests to physical assaults. Journalism is not a crime. Covering a protest isn’t trespassing. We urge authorities to allow journalists to do their job.
At a sit-in, to protest deforestation to make room for a coal mine in Akbelen, south-west Turkey, police detain and fine award-winning journalist Zeynep Kuray covering the events. Kuray was among several local people, activists, and journalists forcibly removed from the area.
Kuray, one of the few women photojournalists working for national media in Turkey, has dealt with an array of police interference. In 2022, CFWIJ documented at least four instances of police obstructing the reporter. In April this year, police beat and detained Kuray and five other women journalists for protesting the mass detentions of journalists in Diyarbakir.
In the latest police obstruction, Kuray was covering a protest at the Akbelen forest, which has been under threat since 2019. Courts have ordered the coal mining company to suspend the expansion on several occasions, but the company illegally started felling thousands of trees on July 24. The company is known to have close ties with the Turkish government.
Protests have continued, with police violently trying to disrupt the peaceful demonstration. One person suffered head trauma, and another fainted after being attacked by police. Four people were targeted with water cannons.
Press violations in July
Women journalists in Turkey are constantly obstructed from doing their job, the Coalition For Women In Journalism has documented. In the last two weeks of July 2023, we recorded how:
three women journalists were detained across Turkey for retweeting news about a prosecutor
two women journalists covering the Saturday Mothers protests were physically assaulted and dragged through the street by police
one women journalist faces prosecution and three years imprisonment for an article on a former judge and current deputy justice minister
and one women journalist is under investigation by the Ministry of Family after exposing the horrific mistreatment of children in state care homes
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is alarmed by the continuous police harassment against Zeynep Kuray. Journalists don't trespass when covering events in the public interest. The persistent police and judicial harassment journalists face in Turkey is absolutely appalling. The country is second globally in imprisoning women journalists, just after Iran, according to data recorded by CFWIJ. The Turkish government and its state apparatus must respect press freedom and allow journalists to report freely without fear of retaliation. We demand authorities retract the fine given to Kuray and allow her to do her job.
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.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.