Turkey, the most notorious country in terms of jailing journalists in the world with 237 currently languishing behind bars, has also come after foreign reporters in an ever-escalating crackdown on the right to freedom of the press and free expression.
Dozens of foreign reporters have faced administrative and legal actions including false imprisonments by the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that is bent on silencing all critical voices in Turkey including local, regional, national and even foreign ones.
Then the new report by Stockholm Center for Freedom which is titled as “The Clampdown on Foreign Journalists in Turkey” explains in detail how reporters from other countries face serious impediments in Turkey which at times suggested a deliberate, systematic and calibrated policy by the government is, in fact, being implemented.
“Turkey has become a hellish place for honest reporters who want to chase stories of public interest because they were often portrayed by Turkish officials as villains who want to do harm to the country”, said Abdullah Bozkurt, The president of Stockholm Center for Freedom.
“For example, on several occasions Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu claimed that foreign countries often use journalists as spies, drawing a bullseye target on their backs”, he added.
Among the most common rights violations experienced by foreign journalists are detention and jailing, denial of residence permit extensions, cancelation of accreditation, deportation, prohibition to enter Turkey, discrediting and finger-pointing.
Although convictions are rare, there are a few examples that are enough to send a chilling message. Around half a dozen foreign journalists have also died under suspicious circumstances in the last five years and the masterminds behind these killings were not identified.
Due to increased obstacles to freedom of expression, a climate of fear and xenophobic attitudes that were often fueled by the narrative from the senior officials, foreign journalists in Turkey are having a difficult time doing their jobs. They are hard-pressed to communicate with news sources, with experts, academics, and other sources avoiding talking to foreign journalists for fear of being labeled as traitors or collaborators.
Please click on the report’s PDF
The post The new report reveals unprecedented clampdown on foreign journalists in Turkey appeared first on Stockholm Center for Freedom.
from Stockholm Center for Freedom https://stockholmcf.org/the-new-report-reveals-unprecedented-clampdown-on-foreign-journalists-in-turkey/
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder