As part of the investigation carried out by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, 22 people, 20 of whom were journalists, were detained in the raids on houses and media outlets on  June 8, 2022. After being detained for 8 days, 16 journalists out of 22 who were transferred to the courthouse were arrested on June 16 on charges of "being a member of a terrorist organization". An indictment was prepared against the journalists 10 months later with the same claim, demanding 7 years, 6 months to 15 years in prison. JINNEWS Manager Safiye Alağaş, whose file has been separated, was released at the first hearing of the case last month. The first hearing of 15 journalists will be held at the Diyarbakır 4th High Criminal Court tomorrow.

 

Journalist professional organizations stated that the arrests aimed to intimidate journalism and prevent the right to receive information, and called for them to be at the Diyarbakır Courthouse on July 11.

 

'WE STAND WITH OUR COLLEAGUES'

 

Demet Aran, Head of the Ankara Branch of the Contemporary Journalists Association (CGD), stated that the freedom of the press is declining day by day in Turkey, and that the right of the people to receive information is being hindered. Aran said: “Our colleagues have been imprisoned for more than a year for doing journalism. The indictment prepared 9 months later showed us that there is not a single piece of evidence other than the news they made about our colleagues. Such trials lead to the regression of freedom of the press. Moreover, with the accusation of 'organization', it is intended to create the perception that our colleagues are not 'arrested for their journalistic activities'. We stand with our colleagues against arrests aimed at silencing, intimidation and preventing the right to receive information.”

 

'WE WILL BE IN AMED FOR SOLIDARITY'

 

Underlining that everyone should come to the hearing and show solidarity, Aran said: “We believe that 15 of our friends will be freed on July 11. We know that this will only be possible if the public supports journalists, journalism and the right to receive information on the day of the hearing. For this reason, we invite everyone who defends journalism, especially our colleagues, to the hearing to be held in Amed(Diyarbakır) on July 11 for solidarity.

 

'JOURNALISM IS NOT A CRIME'

 

Expressing that the Free Press was subjected to constant operations because it wrote the truth, Tartanoğlu made the following call: "We will once again say in the courts, 'The Free Press will not be silent' in the face of these unlawfulnesses, which have become a procedure, almost a law, against the free press. Journalism will be told in the courtrooms, and the minutes of the hearings will be filled with explanations of what journalism is, how and why it is done. We will be in front of the judge once again on July 11 to say, 'Journalism is not a crime'. I am calling for the hearing for the news, for the right to be informed, for the right to be informed.”

 

MA / Hakan Yalçın