UN: The detained journalists should be released immediately

The UN’s special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression visited Turkey following an absence of twenty years and made observations during his one week stay in Turkey. Ankara not only invited rapporteur David Kaye but arranged for him to speak to journalists of its choice and denied access to those not nominated by it. Five of our paper’s journalists and managers were among those he was granted access to. In the statement issued by Kaye following his interviews ( http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20891&LangID=E) he listed his recommendations under seven points including the immediate release of those who are in detention for exercising freedom of thought and expression, and warned that this was not purely a matter of freedom of expression but also had economic consequences for ordinary people. According to the statement, based on studies that have been conducted: “Lengthy network shutdowns have been shown in particular to have a strongly negative economic impact.”

Cannot be restricted

Kaye, who held a press conference following the interviews he conducted over one week, noting that government officials cited threats to security and from terrorism in justification, said, “The government may restrict certain rights, but this does not mean that the government has a blank cheque to restrict the freedom of expression. A distinction must be drawn here. Freedom of expression cannot be restricted.” In common with the EU, UN rapporteur Kaye also identified the Anti-Terrorism Law and decrees with the force of law as representing the most serious impediments to freedom of thought, said, “The Law itself grants excessive discretionary powers to government agencies.” Kaye used the terms “grim and grave” to describe the situation in Turkey, which last hosted a UN special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in 1996.

Release the journalists

 

While rapporteur David Kaye was not granted access to our journalists Murat Sabuncu, Kadri Gürsel, Turhan Günay or Musa Kart, or to Aslı Erdoğan, Ahmet Altan and Mehmet Altan, our paper’s managers and journalists Hakan Kara, Bülent Utku, Güray Öz, Kemal Güngör and Önder Çelik along with linguist Necmiye Alpay were permitted to speak to the rapporteur. Kaye said no reasons were cited to him as to the people he was not allowed to access. Kaye, noting that our journalists are in good health, stated “They said they were not granted access to lawyers and there was limited access to pen and paper, family and books. The prison prosecutor also commented on the conditions but, even so, the remanded people we saw were subject to very serious restrictions; they have no access to information. We visited them to discover how they viewed the grounds for their remand and out of solidarity with the journalists. They are in astonishment, dismay and anguish. We only saw five people. I wish to express my solidarity with the journalists and writers who are in detention in Turkey.”

They are in astonishment and dread

Kaye said the following about the impressions left on him by the journalists he spoke to: “They are not fully able to comprehend how they have fallen foul of the law; we saw the extent of their astonishment and dread. The same applies to Şahin Alpay and his detention does not comply with the proportionality principle. If the grounds cited are the fight against terrorism and public security, we are unable to comprehend the remanding of these people on such grounds .” Kaye continued his recommendations as follows: “We urge the Government to immediately release all detained journalists. We are of the opinion that their liberty must be restored and no journalist should remain in detention any longer. And, following their release, journalists should not be in fear of detention. Journalists were also concerned prior to the coup attempt, but this pressure on the media and freedoms has increased following 15 July.” Kaye had the following to say about the group of five he spoke with, “We learnt that they are kept in three-person cells to which they are confined. These are cramped and they are clean. They are being held together.” He recalled that Alpay had better access to pen and paper, books and information in the prison in which was held. He noted that there was a difference between the two jails.