İSTANBUL – Condemning to the detention of 11 journalists in a police raid, professional organisations demanded the release of their colleagues. Attorney Veysel Ok said: "There is a growing condemnation state due to the allegations of chemical weapons, and this raid may be the result of the condemnation."

 

Mesopotamia Agency (MA) Editor-in-Chief Diren Yurtsever, correspondents Deniz Nazlım, Selman Güzelyüz, Zemo Ağgöz, Berivan Altan, Hakan Yalçın, Emrullah Acar, Ceylan Şahinli, Mehmet Günhan who was a intern at MA for a while, and JINNEWS reporters Habibe Eren and Öznur Değer were detained with handcuffs behind back and torture within the scope of an investigation launched by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, house and office raids in 9 provinces yesterday morning. As part of the investigation, the Ankara office of MA was searched by the police. The torture of the police was reflected in the images distributed by the police.

 

Journalist organisations condemned police raid, detentions and also demanded the immediate release of their colleagues.

 

THERE IS A SPECIAL PRESSURE ON THE KURDISH PRESS

 

Stating that the pressure on journalists is increasing day by day in Turkey and drew attention to the fact that 16 journalists who were arrested in Diyarbakır on June 16 and for whom an indictment has not been prepared and they have been held in prison for months, Media and Legal Studies Association (MLSA), Co-Director, attorney Veysel Ok said: "The government does not allow any source of information other than its own facts to emerge, and that is why journalists are detained today. This operation has a special meaning and presssure. This is the second operation against Kurdish journalists. In the first, 16 people were arrested, and now more than 10 journalists have been detained. There is no clear information about exactly why they were taken, but the oppressive state in the Kurdish Question determines its position on the Kurdish Question and pressure on the Kurdish media. In other words, the state shows its insolubility in the Kurdish Question with pressure on the Kurdish media.”

 

THE AIM OF THE OPERATION

 

Reminding that Kurdistan is the place where the most violations of rights are encountered, Ok said: "The operations are also a pre-election operation. Especially in terms of election security, corruption and war conditions in the region, the biggest duty falls to the Kurdish media. Kurdish media was reporting on the subject. The state does not want anyone to know about its unlawful acts on the election term. That's why the state launched this operation and its'aim is to create more pressure environment, especially in the cities of Kurdistan.”

 

'WE KNOW THE DETAINED JOURNALISTS WELL'

 

Adding that the government wants to send a message to the society by putting pressure on journalists, Ok said: “The journalists could be called to testify with a notification and a phone call but they were detained with heavy weapons, their doors were smashed and they were tortured. Police did all of them in front of the cameras. They want to spread fear into society with arresting journalists. Their main purpose is to ensure that information and communication spread from a single source in a climate of fear in Turkey. We know the detained journalists. Although the journalis do not have any suspicion of escaping, the Turkish state thinks that they can control journalists better by intimidating them in the society with unlawful practice.”

 

'THE OPERATION IS RESULT OF THEIR REPORTS ABOUT CHEMICAL WEAPONS'

 

Stating that the Kurdish press has been reporting news stories that draw the attention of Turkey's agenda lately and that this situation does not please the government, Ok said: This is a right to freedom of expression and get information. In other words, there is no question of not being able to report news story that exists because the state is disturbed. It is the duty of the journalist to reoport the news stories and spread them to the society. In other words, there is a growing condemnation Turkish state due to the allegations of chemical weapons, which may be the result of chemical weapons allegation.”

 

CALL TO THE STRUGGLE

 

Emphasizing that no one is safe in the current legal system, Ok said: "journalists are not safe at all escially after the last censorship law. Journalism is not a crime. The fact that state institutions are disturbed by the news story is not a reason for the detention of journalists. The most important thing is solidarity and fighting together against these oppressions. I would like to underline that no one has any legal security in this system if people become lonely.”

 

'THE OPERATIONS AIM TO CRIMINALIZE JOURNALISM

 

Gökhan Durmuş, Chairperson of the Journalists' Union of Turkey (TGS), said: "Our colleagues were entered into their homes early in the morning even they  would go to testify even if the state called them and they were detained with handcuffs behind back. In fact, a colleague of ours continues to be detained despite having a two-month-old baby. These operations are aimed at criminalizing journalism. I think that the simultaneous detention of 14 of our colleagues in Turkey, where the censorship law was enacted, is trying to prevent access to news story, will turn into a move to end journalistic activities and the pressure will increase in the coming period.”

 

'THEY MUST RELEASE OUR COLLEAGUES IMMEDIATELY'

 

Durmuş said: “Our colleagues are longtime employees of the Mesopotamia Agency and Jinnews News Agency. This is a heavy blow to press freedom. We demand the immediate release of our detained colleagues. We also want to  take action against the police officers who took them into custody at 6 am and treated them in such a manner contrary to human rights. They must release our colleagues immediately.”