ISTANBUL, Turkey (A.W.)—On Dec. 20, Turkish police arrested dozens of journalists it accused of being in the “press and propaganda wing” of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), targeting news organizations in Istanbul, Ankara, Sirnak, Mersin, Diyarbakir, Izmir, Urfa, and Van.
- Turkish police arrested dozens of journalists it accused of being in the “press and propaganda wing” of the PKK
Police raided the homes of journalists and the offices of Kurdish and pro-Kurdish newspapers such as the Ozgur Gundem, Etik News Agency, Gun Printing Office, Democratic Modernity Magazine, and Dicle News Agency (DNA), reported Firat News Agency, adding that the raids were part of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) operation. Turkish authorities have been targeting KCK headquarters, accusing them of being the urban wing of the banned PKK. The order of the searches and arrests came from the Istanbul 12th High Criminal Court, reported Firat.
“We consider this a witch hunt and a threat to anyone who is in opposition,” Ibrahim Aydin, the chairman of Bir Gun’s executive board, told CNN.
“It basically looks like all pro-Kurdish media…have been targeted in this operation. And if you crack down on those kinds of dissenting voices, you are really closing the door on healthy criticism and dissent in a democratic society,” Emma Sinclair-Webb, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, was quoted as saying.
Police detained 13 of DNA’s staff reporters and office employees. The home of an Agence France Presse photographer was also searched, reported CNN. Meanwhile, Firat reported that four children were detained on Dec. 19 in Adana for participating in a demonstration protesting PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan’s solitary confinement and the ongoing military operations targeting the Kurdish population.
Turkey has been detaining leftist and pro-Kurdish journalists, and human rights activists, sometimes holding them for nearly a year before they appear in court.
In these latest raids, police reportedly arrested or raided the homes of the following individuals, among others:
Serefettin Sumeli, Gun Printing Office shareholder
Mustafa Ozer, AFP photographer
Zeynep Kuray, Bir Gun reporter
Nahide Ermis, Democratic Modernity magazine broadcasting board member
Kenan Kirikkaya, DIHA reporter based in Ankara
Semiha Alankus, DIHA reporter
Sadık Topaloglu, DIHA reporter based in Sanliurfa
Fatma Kocak, DIHA news editor based in Istanbul
Cagdas Kaplan, DIHA reporter
Zuhal Tekiner, DIHA reporter based in Istanbul
Omer Celik, Bir Gun reporter
Mazlum Ozdemir, DIHA reporter based in Diyarbakır
Arzu Demir, ETHA’s editor and journalist based in Istanbul
Ertus Bozkurt, Firat distribution worker
Zeynep Kuray, Kurdish media journalist
Dilek Demirel, DIHA reporter based in Izmir
Davut Ucar, Etik Agency director
Huseyin Deniz, journalist
Evrim Kepenek, DIHA reporter based in Van
Sevinc Tuncelli, DIHA reporter based in Izmir
Cagdas Ulus, Vatan newspaper reporter
Ismail Yildiz, Istanbul
Ziya Cicek, Ozgur Gundem reporter
Nuri Firat, Istanbul
During an earlier wave of arrests in October, Turkish authorities detained more than 40 individuals over suspected ties with the KCK. Authorities also raided the offices of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP). Among those arrested was Ragip Zarakolu, a human rights activist and the director of the Belge Publishing House.
So much for democratic country or TRYING to be one.. such a joke.. Turkey will never be civilized and anything that screams NON-TURKISH will be put in jail like these unfortunate individuals.. this is just wrong…..and Turkey has the balls to yell at France for impeding or banning free speech? HYPOCRITES…..
It’s simple. Turkey makes its own rules that systemically limit freedom and this empowers them to rationalize their moves. A” model “of a secular Moslem democracy. What a disgrace. Hypocracy at its best. Diverse thought in any society is viewed one of two ways….. as a threat or as an enabler of advancement. Which school do you think Turkey subscribes to?
If the Kurdish rights activists want to cooperate with the Turkish government to ask for more rights (the Turkish government has done tons of reforms out there and it is not enough for them), they need to one, condemn the PKK for it’s violent methods on all citizens in Turkey, as well as how the PKK commits terrorist acts against resorts, schools, towns, villages, and other things. The PKK is a seperatist terrorist organization who has links to Communist. Look up “PKK” and a “Communist Flag” and you will see what I mean. The KCK, DTP and other groups need to renounce the PKK terrorist groups and rebels.