The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomed the release of Turkish-German journalist Deniz Yücel, correspondent for the German daily newspaper Die Welt, who spent 366 days in pre-trial detention without indictment. His lawyer, Veysel Ok, confirmed on 16 February that the court in Istanbul ordered Yücel’s release, pending trial. He does not face any ban from leaving the country. On 14 February 2017, Yücel was first taken into custody upon accusations of being a member of a terrorist organisation, spreading propaganda and misusing information and subsequently jailed. His conditions of detention had deteriorated in March 2017, when he was put in…

Leading freedom of expression organisations have submitted third-party interventions in ten cases against jailed Turkish journalists to which the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has given priority status. The interventions offer detailed legal analyses of the principles at stake in the cases of the detained journalists. The cases before the ECtHR concern the detention of journalists and board members from the Cumhuriyet newspaper, along with the cases of journalists Murat Aksoy, Şahin Alpay, Ahmet and Mehmet Altan, Ali Bulaç, Ayşe Nazlı Ilıcak, Ahmet Şık, Deniz Yücel and Atilla Taş. The separate interventions include submissions from the Media Legal Defence Initiative, PEN International, ARTICLE 19, the…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes the decision of Baltasar Garzón, a former member of Spain’s National High Court (Audiencia Nacional) to take a pro bono defense of the Swedish-Turkish journalist Hamza Yalçin currently detained in Barcelona and pending extradition by an Interpol order issued by Turkey. The International Baltasar Garzón Foundation (Fibgar) represents Hamza Yalçin through the ILOCAD law firm, runned by the magistrate, who considers that the detention violates the journalist’s rights. Hamza Yalçin, 59, a journalist citizen of Sweden, is being held in custody in Spain after being arrested on 3 August at the Barcelona airport in compliance with an…

UPDATE (24/08/2017):  Hamza Yalçin publishes letter in El Periodico criticising his arrest in Spain The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) together with its affiliates in Spain and Sweden have strongly condemned the continued imprisonment of Swedish-Turkish journalist Hamza Yalçin by Spanish authorities since 3 August 2017. “It turns out that Tayyip Erdogan declared me a terrorist because I have written and spoken against him and he warned Interpol to capture me and deliver me. The Spanish authorities, therefore, detained me and imprisoned me. I would hope that the Government of Sweden, a country to which I came…

The trial, which began on Monday 24 July, involved 17 Cumhuriyet journalists and executives wrongfully accused of secretly supporting the PKK – a militant Kurdish organisation and FETO, the group allegedly responsible for last year’s failed coup. The Cumhuriyet employees on trial are editor-in-chief Murat Sabuncu, columnist Kadri Gürsel, CEO Akin Atalay, printing administrator Önder Çelik, attorney Bülent Utku, cartoonist Musa Kart, columnist Hakan Karasinir, attorney Mustafa Kemal Güngör, reporter Ahmet Şık, editor Turhan Günay, columnist Güray Öz, columnist Hikmet Aslan Çetinkaya, former editor-in-chief Can Dündar, columnist Aydin Engin, financial manager Bülent Yener, accounting manager Günseli Özaltay and columnist Orhan…

Tuncer Çetinkaya, a journalist and former regional representative of Zaman newspaper in Antalya, has been detained for 11 months in Turkey and is now held in Antalya prison. He urgently needs medical care. According to his relatives who contacted the IFJ-EFJ, Tuncer Çetinkaya is seriously ill and suffers from autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) which requires regular and specific treatment. His daughter reports that during his first three months in jail,  Çetinkaya was not allowed to use his drugs or see a doctor. His health situation has steadily worsened and he has already lost 54% of his kidney. He also lost a lot of…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is backing the statement sent by its affiliates TGS, TGC and DISK Basin-Is calling the Turkish authorities to stop the criminalisation of journalists and media workers in Turkey. On 25/12/2016, the following journalists and media workers Tunca Öğreten (freelance), Mahir Kanaat (accountant for BirGün daily), Ömer Celik (DIHABER news director), Metin Yoksa (DIHABER correspondent) and Eray Saygin have been detained by police and no explanation has been provided for these arrests. “You cannot hide the truth by jailing journalists”, said Journalists Union of Turkey (TGS) in a statement. DISK-Basin Is underlines the fact that…

The Turkish government issued on Saturday 29 October a decree shutting down 15 Kurdish media outlets: 11 newspapers, two news agencies and three magazines. The latest closures bring the number of media outlets shut down under state of emergency in Turkey to 168. The Turkish government declared a state of emergency on 20 July, following the failed coup attempt on 15 July. This situation allows the government to close any media organization by issuing a cabinet decree. Here is the list of media outlets targeted by the decree issued on Saturday: Newspapers: Özgür Gündem, Azadiya Welat, Batman Çağdaş , Cizre Postası…

Evrensel journalists Hasan Akbaş, Fırat Topal and Serpil Berk, as well as Reuters’ correspondent Sertaç Kayar have been recounting “the torture and threats” they faced after being arrested as the crackdown on media continues across Turkey. The European and International Federation of Journalists (FEJ/FIJ) has joined their affiliate DISK Basin-Is in demanding an end to the crackdown and respect for the rights of professional media workers. The four journalists were among the first on the scene following a bomb attack on 10 August in the Southeast Anatolian province of Diyarbakir. Deemed suspicious by the police for being in the vicinity of…

 The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) launched a solidarity campaign with the Turkish journalists following the new attacks on press freedom and human rights in Turkey since the coup attempt on 15 July. We invite EFJ/IFJ affiliates and partners to help the Turkish colleagues by: sending a letter to the Turkish ambassador in your country and/or your national government (sample letters enclosed) sending a contribution to the IFJ Safety Fund in order to support individual requests from Turkey (Bank account BE64 2100 7857 0052; Swift Code GEBABEBB; communication “Solidarity Turkey”) sharing in your social media and website the visual “Did you…

Updated 28.07.2016. As arrests of journalists and media closure continue, the European and the International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) call on the European Union to take additional steps to hold Turkish president Erdogan accountable for press freedom breaches.   Since the coup aimed at toppling President Erdogan failed on 16 July, the EFJ and IFJ have been alerting on the number of arrests of journalists and media closure for being allegedly  associated with the pro-Gülen movement accused of being behind the failed coup.   The situation came to a point where local media’s fear to be arrested is leading to an increasing…

The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ and IFJ) have today condemned the sentencing of two prominent Turkish journalists to two years behind bars for illustrating their columns with a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed published by French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. Journalists Ceyda Karan and Hikmet Çetinkaya, from the independent Cumhuriyet daily, were sentenced to two years each in jail by an Istanbul criminal court today. They went on trial in January last year on charges of “inciting public hatred” and “insulting religious values” after illustrating their columns with the controversial cartoon. Bulent Utku, lawyer for Hikmet Çetinkaya and…

The International and European Federations of Journalists joined today in Istanbul other media organisations in Istanbul for an international press conference in solidarity with Turkish journalists and media workers.One day before the hearing of Cumhuriyet journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, the organisations gathered to back the campaign to set free imprisoned journalists that has been launched by the Journalists Association of Turkey (TGC), Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS), Progressive Journalists Association (CGD), DISK-Basin Is trade union, Haber Sen trade union and the National Press Institute. The IFJ and the EFJ were represented by Barry White and Mehmet Koksal. The campaign…

The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) are strongly concerned about the alerts they receive on a daily basis about DIHA journalists and media workers being permanently attacked, beaten, threatened or jailed by the Turkish authorities because of their news coverage in conflictual Kurdish populated areas in Southeastern Turkey. The most recent violation is related to Mazlum Dolan, DIHA press correspondent in the municipality of Sur (Diyarbakir), where the journalist was locked at the basement of a building under heavy firing. “We are under heavy bombing, we can’t breath and we can’t go out. We are going to suffocate…

Turkish journalist Füsun Erdoğan visited the IFJ/EFJ offices today to share the latest developments of her trial to be set in Ankara, Tukey’s capital on 23 March. On 2 November 2013, Füsun Erdogan was given a life sentence and charged with being a member of an alleged terrorist organisation. Her trial in the appeal court will take place on 23 March. The IFJ and the EFJ will ask the Turkish government to ensure a fair trial and set the journalist free. Founder of the radio station Özgür Radyo (Radio Free), Erdogan has often defended political, religious and ethnic minorities. On…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) warmly welcomes the release of Mohammed Rasool, fixer and reporter working for Vice News, today (05/01/2016) following 131 days of detention in Turkish jail as “protective measure”. The information has been confirmed in a statement published by Vice News adding that Mohammed Rasool “is not free to leave the country and must also report twice a week to a police station” and the media worker “is now looking forward to being reunited with his family, friends and colleagues, who ask for his privacy to be respected during this time.”  “The release of Mohammed Rasool is a…