28 March 2025

 

Journalists should not be detained or arrested for reporting on protests

The Foreign Media Association (FMA), an organization representing more than 100 journalists in Turkey working for international media outlets, is alarmed by the ongoing detentions and arrests of our colleagues who have been covering mass protests in Turkey as members of the Turkish press and Turkish citizens working for international press. We call for the release of all detained and arrested journalists and an end to these acts of intimidation against a free press.

Since opposition politician Ekrem İmamoğlu, the elected mayor of Istanbul, was detained on 19 March and subsequently arrested on alleged corruption charges, demonstrations have spread around Istanbul and other cities in Turkey. At least seven journalists – including AFP staff photographer Yasin Akgül and international award-winning photojournalist Bülent Kılıç – were formally arrested on charges of “violating the law on meetings and demonstrations” while reporting on the protests, which the government has deemed illegal assemblies.

Though these seven journalists were later released by a court, new detentions of journalists continue, including at least three this morning. In addition, BBC correspondent Mark Lowen, an FMA member during his years living in Turkey, was deported by Turkish authorities yesterday after being taken from his hotel and detained for 17 hours.

FMA joins international media freedom groups in calling for an end to the crackdown on media in Turkey, which has included police violence, home raids, detentions, and censorship measures that restrict access to news that is in the public interest. Journalists must be allowed to report freely without fear of arrest or intimidation.

The Foreign Media Association (FMA) is deeply concerned over recent developments with Turkey’s Radio and Television High Council (RTÜK) forcing several international news outlets to apply for online broadcast licenses.

A 72-hour time limit imposed by RTÜK on the Turkish language services of DW, Euronews and VOA to apply for a license or risk having their webpages blocked is the latest example of government-imposed restrictions over independent media. Of the three targeted media platforms, DW does not have a separate domain for its Turkish service so is facing the danger of a complete block on all 30 of its different language services.

RTÜK bases its latest decision on the “Directive on Radio, TV, and On-Demand Broadcasts Shared on the Internet” which went into force in August 2019.

Threatening to block international media websites is the latest step in the crackdown on the media in Turkey. For years, relying on hefty fines, arbitrary powers, and vaguely defined regulations, independent and critical press has been subject to deliberate and targeted crackdown, including imprisonment of media representatives. More than 100 media outlets have been shut down in the past years. According to Reporters Without Borders, 2021 World Press Freedom Index Turkey ranks 153 out of 180 countries.

The recent directive, which makes it compulsory for media to obtain a RTÜK license, is in violation of several principles, including the right to freedom of expression and the right to information, protected under the Turkish Constitution and the right of freedom of media and broadcasting protected by the European Convention of Human Rights.

FMA urges authorities to swiftly revise all rules in a way that respects press freedom and stands with journalists in Turkey, who are simply doing their jobs reporting the news in an impartial manner. We remind the authorities that freedom of the press is a pillar of democracy.

The FMA Board

23 February 2022

Yabancı Medya Derneği (FMA) Türkiye, tecrübeli gazeteci ve FMA üyesi olan Bülent Mumay’ın kamu fonlarının usulsüz kullanımı iddialarına ilişkin haberleri nedeniyle cezalandırılmasını kınıyor. Bu mahkeme kararı Türkiye’de bağımsız medyaya yönelik artan baskının bir başka endişe verici göstergesidir.

20 Ağustos 2024 tarihinde mahkeme, Mumay’a geçen Mayıs ayında sosyal medya paylaşımları nedeniyle verilen 20 ay ertelenmiş hapis cezasını onadı. Mumay, İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyesi’nin metro fonlarının, hükümetle yakın ilişkileri olan özel yüklenici bir inşaat firması tarafından haciz edildiğine dair haberleri paylaşmıştı. Ertelenmiş hapis cezası, belirli bir süre içinde yeniden suç işlenmesi durumunda uygulanmasıyla, genellikle muhalif sesleri ve eleştirileri susturmanın bir yolu olarak kullanılması endişeleri artmıştır

Mahkeme, Mumay’ın cezasını onamanın yanı sıra, Türk medyasının bu kararla ilgili haber yapmasını engelleyen bir erişim yasağı da getirdi.

Derneğimiz, üyemiz Bülent Mumay ile dayanışma içindedir ve bu açık basın özgürlüğü ihlaline karşı durmaktadır. Yetkilileri, ülkenin kendi Basın Kanunu ve Anayasası ile AİHM kararlarına uymaya ve basını hedef almaktan kaçınmaya çağırıyoruz.

Tüm gazetecilerin, demokrasinin temeli olan mesleki görevlerini korkusuzca ve özgürce yerine getirme hakkı güvence altına alınmalıdır.

FMA Türkiye

22.08.2024

The Foreign Media Association (FMA) Turkey condemns the sentencing of longtime Turkish journalist and FMA member Bülent Mumay for his reporting on alleged misuse of public funds. The legal ruling against him is yet another alarming indication of the growing pressure on independent media in Turkey.

On 20 August 2024, a Turkish court upheld the 20-month suspended prison sentence handed to Mumay last May over his social-media posts. Mumay had shared news reports regarding the alleged garnishing of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality’s metro funds by the private contractor Met-Gün Construction, which has close links to the Turkish government. Suspended sentences, in which the prison term is not served unless the convicted person reoffends within a set period of time, are often used as a way to try and silence dissent and criticism.

In addition to upholding Mumay’s sentence, the court imposed an access ban barring Turkish outlets from reporting news about the decision.

FMA stands in solidarity with our member Bülent Mumay and against this blatant violation of press freedom. We call upon Turkish authorities to abide by the country’s own Press Law and Constitution, as well as ECHR rulings, and refrain from targeting the press.

All journalists must be allowed to carry out their professional role, which is vital to a functioning democracy, without fear of intimidation.

FMA Turkey

22.08.2024