Mesopotamia Agency (MA) reporters Adnan Bilen, Cemil Uğur and Jinnews reporter Şehriban Abi, journalist Nazan Sala, Yeni Yaşam newspaper distributor Fehim Çetiner and former newspaper distributor Şükran Erdem, who were detained in Van on October 6, have been in custody for 4 days. The reason why the journalists were detained remains unknown because of the confidentiality order on the file issued by the prosecutor.

 

Prosecutor İsmail Köker is also carrying out the investigation opened against law enforcement officers regarding the incident in which Servet Turgut, who was thrown from a helicopter after being taken into custody by the soldiers on September 11 and died, and Osman Şiban was seriously injured in the countryside of Çatak district.

 

Speaking with journalists and distributors in custody, Lawyer Barış Oflas, a member of the Board of the Van Bar Association and a member of the Lawyers Association for Freedom (ÖHD) Van Branch, said that the main reason for the operation was to prevent public disclosure of the rights violations in the region.

 

'WE STAND WITH THE MA REPORTERS'

 

Reminding that many press institutions were closed after the State of Emergency (OHAL) declared after the July 15 coup attempt, Oflas stated that there was an ongoing pressure on journalists since then. Stating that despite the arrest of many journalists, the press institutions are struggling to survive, Oflas said: "The Mesopotamia Agency is an institution that has been opened in this process and has become a reliable source of news in the society as a result of long efforts.  I also know many of the MA reporters individually. Wherever there is a violation of rights in this city, wherever there is an incident that is tried to be covered up, they are always the direct witnesses of those violations, trying to shed a light on it. Especially they are journalists who have been trying to expose all violations of rights in Van for 3 years and trying to protect the right to recieve news for the society. Ofcourse detaining and arresting a journalist for simply doing their jobs is also a violation of rights. If you shut down many media outlets in the country, if you put journalists in jail, if you interrogate people just because they are following the news, and if you disregard the presumption of innocence as if they are doing them within the scope of an organized crime, your ranking in press freedom will be far behind China or other dictatorial countries."

 

Oflas stated that the main reason for the confidentiality order was to create a perceptipon in the public that these journalists were doing something wrong. Stating that the confidentiality order is unacceptable, Oflas said: "Confidentiality order is too a violation of rights. As a lawyer you have to investigate the evidence and prepare a defense in line with them. We consider this confidentiality order unlawful."

 

PRESUMPTION IF INNOCENCE IS IGNORED

 

Reminding that the presumption of innocence was ignored by the mainstream media when they serviced the footage of the journalists' detention as an 'operation on an illegal organization'. Oflas said: "These journalists are working side by side with the police everyday. They follow up on the press releases in the same place. We are witnessing this all the time. To detain these people with raids, laying them on the floor is not right. They could simply asked them to come in for a statement. It is against the law and it is simply ignoring the presumption of innocence."

 

INTERROGATION UNDER THE PRETENSE OF A CHAT

 

Attorney Oflas said Jinnews reporter and Journalist Nazan Sala were interrogated by the police under the pretense of a chat, without their lawyers. Oflas said they were asked from whom they recieved instructions to follow the news, why they were following press releases, the phonecalls with their sources and why they traveled under the pretense of 'chatting'.