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There were at least 29 Turkish journalists in prison on journalism-related
charges at the end of 1997—more than in any other country. Turkey has
topped the list of countries which imprison journalists every year since
1994.
There were also at least 37 Turkish journalists released from jail in
the course of 1997—the largest number of releases CPJ has ever recorded
in one year in one country. International pressure and the growing assertiveness
of Turkish journalists combined with the installation at mid-year of
a more reform-minded government put a brake on new prosecutions of reporters
and editors. There was one new case of a journalist convicted and imprisoned
in 1997, as compared to 55 in 1994, 30 in 1995, and 27 in 1996. Yet
the laws under which these journalists were prosecuted remain on the
books, despite promises of sweeping reform.
Both because of their sheer numbers and the complexity of their cases,
the journalists imprisoned in Turkey have been a special focus of CPJ’s
research efforts over the past year. Establishing a causal link between
the prosecution and the professional activities of an imprisoned journalist
often requires a subjective assessment of the political context and
evidentiary basis of the conviction.
CPJ’s analyses of these cases are based primarily on information gathered
first-hand from court documents and interviews with imprisoned journalists’
colleagues and attorneys. CPJ’s research also incorporates information
from the Turkish government itself. In January 1997, we submitted our
research on imprisoned journalists in Turkey to the Turkish authorities
for comment. In July 1997, the Justice Ministry responded with detailed
remarks on 21 of the 78 cases we had documented. In September 1997,
CPJ submitted further documentation about these cases to members of
the Turkish cabinet for their review. CPJ also shared and compared documentation
with the Paris-based Reporters sans Frontičres, the Journalists Association
of Turkey, and the Press Council of Turkey, which provided invaluable
assistance in locating and analyzing court records. The Press Council
also played a critical role in 1997 in interceding with CPJ on behalf
of Turkey’s imprisoned journalists, including 1996 International Press
Freedom Award recipient Ocak Isik Yurtcu, who was freed in August.
As a result of this collaborative research effort CPJ removed three
cases from its listing of imprisoned Turkish journalists, based on court
documents showing that the three journalists had been convicted on charges
unrelated to their profession. Newly obtained information also raised
questions about the linkage between the profession and the conviction
in another four cases of imprisoned journalists previously reported
by CPJ; these cases are now listed as "unconfirmed," pending further
inquiry. Also on the basis of new information, CPJ confirmed four previously
unreported cases of journalists who were in prison as of December 31,
1996; two were later released, and two remained in prison as of December
31, 1997.
CPJ has concluded that on December 31, 1997:
At least 29 journalists were in prison in Turkey because of their work,
compared to 74* confirmed cases one year earlier; they included one
journalist who was sentenced in 1997, plus two journalists whose earlier
imprisonments were not confirmed by CPJ until 1997. All but two of the
imprisoned journalists were prosecuted under Articles 168 or 169 of
the Penal Code for allegedly aiding or joining a banned "terrorist"
or "separatist" organization.
Thirty-seven journalists who had been imprisoned as of December 1996
were released in the course of 1997; all but two were on the list of
78 published by CPJ a year ago in Attacks on the Press in 1996. The
36 released journalists include six newspaper editors released as a
result of a limited amnesty for jailed editors passed by parliament
in August 1997 following CPJ’s July mission to Turkey. One imprisoned
journalist was freed prior to an appeal hearing. Another 12 who had
been held in pre-trial detention were released on bail, pending the
outcome of their trials; five others were acquitted. Four journalists
were released after serving out their terms; another eight were released
for reasons CPJ has been unable to document.
We categorize 13 journalists as "unconfirmed" cases of imprisonment.
In five cases we have been unable to confirm reports of their release;
in another four, as noted above, newly obtained information raises doubt
about whether the journalists’ work was the main reason for their prosecution.
This list is not exhaustive. We believe that there may be other journalists
who are now in prison for exercising their internationally guaranteed
right to freedom of expression. And we are aware of cases which we continue
to investigate because we have not confirmed the initial report or are
attempting to gather information about their prosecutions and alleged
offenses that has hitherto been unavailable.
Background
Since 1994, Turkey has consistently imprisoned more working journalists
than any other nation. Most of the journalists jailed in Turkey have
been prosecuted for news coverage or opinion articles related to the
conflict with Kurdish insurgents in Southeastern Turkey or for their
affiliation with far-left publications that are viewed as sympathetic
to armed guerrilla groups inside Turkey.
In January, CPJ submitted detailed information on 78 imprisoned journalists
to Turkish authorities for their review and comment. The Turkish Embassy
in Washington, which had challenged the accuracy of CPJ’s information
publicly and in subsequent private meetings with CPJ representatives,
agreed to forward the list to the Justice Ministry. We received no response
until July, shortly before CPJ sent its delegation to Turkey, when the
embassy sent CPJ a memo conveying comments from the Turkish Justice
Ministry on 21 of CPJ’s 78 cases. It is significant that in only four
of the 78 cases of jailed journalists we documented did Turkish authorities
challenge any of the factual information. In three of four, we were
not able to verify the Justice Ministry’s statements about the charges
against the defendants. In the fourth case, we verified the Justice
Ministry’s statement about the charge against the defendant and, based
on court records, we determined that the case was not related to the
defendant’s work as a journalist.
In 14 cases about which CPJ received official comment, Turkish authorities
either reiterated information that CPJ had previously reported—for example,
stating that a journalist was convicted for membership in a specific
outlawed organization—or provided details about the criminal prosecutions
that did not contradict CPJ’s original reports.
CPJ Methodology and Classifications
The preponderance of the information below comes from CPJ investigations
in Turkey between July and December 1997. The information was gathered
in Istanbul and Ankara, through dozens of interviews with reporters
and editors, as well as with lawyers who had represented newspapers,
magazines, and individual journalists indicted under the provisions
of Turkey’s Penal Code and Anti-Terror Law for a variety of criminal
offenses.
We have relied heavily on documents, such as indictments, transcripts
of court proceedings, and court decisions, in ascertaining the facts
about the state’s prosecution of imprisoned journalists, evaluating
Turkish authorities’ assertions about the nature of the offenses, and
determining whether the journalists in prison are in fact there for
their journalistic work. Since many of the journalists whose imprisonment
we have documented have been formally charged with violent offenses,
court documents containing detailed accounts of the prosecution’s rationale
and evidentiary process and the defense’s response are essential to
our analysis of the cogency of the state’s accusations. These documents
rarely provide conclusive evidence about whether a journalist was imprisoned
because of his or her journalistic work. Rather, they typically offer
a window into a defendant’s trial, noting the state’s accusations against
the defendant, evidence it presented in court to support its claim,
and, often, the defense’s argument. And they often reveal the vicious
circularity that characterizes many prosecutions of journalists in Turkey,
when the state claims that the journalist’s affiliation with a legal
publication or possession of copies of a legally circulating newspaper
constitutes proof of illegal activity.
Because the documents are not always available or what is available
is sometimes incomplete, we have cross-checked the information on the
imprisoned journalists using a variety of sources, including the independent
research of other international and local press freedom organizations
and human rights groups, and interviews with the imprisoned journalists’
colleagues and lawyers.
Confirmed cases of journalism-related prosecutions include working journalists
and others who have been prosecuted as a result of journalistic activities.
When a journalist has been formally charged with a criminal offense
such as membership in a proscribed organization or specific acts of
terrorism, we have used the following criteria in making our determination
that the underlying motive for the prosecution is the journalist’s work:
1) Court documents indicate that the state has based its accusations,
wholly or in part, on a journalist’s affiliation with or work for a
particular publication; 2) There has been a pattern of government harassment
of the journalist and/or his or her publication; 3) A defendant appears
to have been denied due process or contends that confessions or other
self-incriminating statements were given under torture; credible accounts
of the torture of defendants, coercion of witnesses, and falsification
of documents in Turkish criminal justice proceedings are too numerous
to disregard such claims.
All but two of the cases in the "confirmed" category involve journalists
charged and convicted under Articles 168 or 169 of Turkey’s Penal Code,
under which it is a crime to belong or provide assistance to armed insurgent
groups or proscribed political organizations. Membership and assistance
are both loosely defined. The Turkish government has used the broad
provisions of these articles against journalists and publications affiliated
with or sympathetic to Kurdish separatists or banned leftist political
groups. Many of the cases in this category demonstrate a pattern of
harassment of particular publications which we believe makes credible
the contentions of journalists convicted under Articles 168 and 169
that they were prosecuted because of their work as journalists. We have
grouped those cases by the publication with which the journalist is
or was affiliated and have provided a brief explanation about the publication’s
content and political history.
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