Türkiye: Release and drop charges against wrongfully imprisoned Kurdish journalists in Diyarbakır
12 July – The Turkish authorities should drop all charges against 18 journalists currently standing trial on spurious terrorism grounds in Diyarbakır, south-eastern Türkiye, PEN International said today. The organisation calls once again for the immediate release of 15 of them, who have been held in pre-trial detention since June 2022.
On 11 July 2023, the trial of 18 Kurdish journalists – 15 of whom detained for more than a year – began at the Diyarbakır 4th High Criminal Court. The 728-page indictment accusing them of membership of a terrorist organisation was produced 10 months after their arrest, when they were notably questioned about their journalistic activities and social media posts. Most of them work for pro-Kurdish media outlets. All deny any wrongdoing and face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
‘The Turkish government’s intention to suppress criticism of its policies and silence the press is a way of walling in any calls for freedom. Its dream is to create a silent society where nobody will dissent or speak the truth. The Kurdish opposition, with its press and elected representatives, is among the main targets of this siege. The journalists in Diyarbakır should be released immediately, and all obstacles to freedom of expression should be lifted as a way to achieve peace, fraternity, and equality in the country’ said Burhan Sonmez, PEN International President.
Additional information
On 8 June 2022, 20 journalists and one media worker were detained following home raids in Diyarbakır, as part of two separate criminal investigations conducted by the Diyarbakır Prosecutor’s Office. The offices of Jin News, Pel Production, Piya Production and Ari Production were also raided, with police officers confiscating cameras, computers, news equipment, and other documents. Although a gag order was imposed on the investigations, pro-government outlets reported that the raids were carried out as part of an anti-terror operation into the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) ‘Press Committee.’
The journalists and media worker were held in police custody for eight days. Neither them nor their lawyers were given information about the operations or investigations. On 16 June, the detainees were questioned about their journalistic activities and social media posts, and were notably asked what they thought of the PKK. Later that day, the court ordered the arrest of 16 of them on ‘strong suspicion of membership of a terrorist organisation’; the others were released on probation and placed under a travel ban. They must also report to the police station twice a month. PEN International issued a statement at the time, calling for their release.
On 12 April 2023, 18 of the defendants were officially charged with membership of a terrorist organisation. Lezgin Akdeniz, Serdar Altan, Zeynel Abidin Bulut, Ömer Çelik, Suat Doğuhan, Mehmet Ali Ertaş, Ramazan Geciken, Mazlum Doğan Güler, İbrahim Koyuncu, Abdurrahman Öncü, Aziz Oruç, Mehmet Şahin, Remziye Temel, Neşe Toprak and Elif Üngür remain behind bars. Esmer Tunç, Kadir Bayram, and Mehmet Yalçın were also indicted but free pending trial.
In September 2022, the Assembly of Delegates of PEN International adopted a resolution on the repression of Kurdish language and culture in Türkiye, which specifically called on the authorities to end the prosecution and detention of writers and journalists on the basis of the content of their writing, including in support of Kurdish language and culture.
For further details contact Aurélia Dondo, Head of Europe and Central Asia Region at PEN International: Aurelia.dondo@pen-international.org