Turkey: CFWIJ Demands Reinstatement Of Dismissed Cumhuriyet Employees
Location: Turkey, Istanbul
Date: November 30, 2021Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
Cumhuriyet newspaper dismissed eight journalists, five of whom were women, without notice. Alev Coşkun, the publisher and head of the Cumhuriyet Foundation, sacks eight journalists without the Editor-in-Chief Aykut Küçükkaya’s consent. CFWIJ condemns this ruthless decision taken by Turkey’s one of the prestigious newspapers, especially considering these days when the crackdown tremendously escalates against press freedom. We demand the immediate reinstatement of dismissed journalists.
Alev Coşkun, the publisher and head of the Cumhuriyet Foundation, sacks eight journalists without notice and makes this decision without any agreement of the newspaper's Editor-in-Chief, Aykut Küçükkaya. The Journalists’ Union Of Turkey (TGS) made a statement following events and declared the expulsion came after signing its first collective agreement in 18 years with the newspaper. The union stressed the decision as a discriminatory step against the union organization.
Editor-in-Chief Olcay Büyüktaş Akça, Cumhuriyet Sunday Editor Hilal Köse, Correction Service Chief Rüya Özalkan, Editor Ece Piroğlu, reporter Tuğba Özer, Sports Manager Sami Gürel, photojournalist Vedat Arık, and Mahmut Gündüz who worked in the archives were the names of the dismissal.
Following the incident, Aykut Küçükkaya took to his Twitter account and announced that he will stand aside with his colleagues. He said, "Eight of my colleagues, with whom I am proud to have worked for years as the Editor-in-Chief of Cumhuriyet, were dismissed by the decision of the company management without my knowledge and approval. I will stand with all my colleagues and fight to take back this decision…”
TGS, on the other hand, organized a protest at Cumhuriyet’s headquarters in İstanbul and released a press statement in response to the dismissals.
“It is not a coincidence that the Cumhuriyet administration, which claims economic reasons were behind the dismissals, chose eight of our colleagues who were actively joining the union,” said TGS.
“We call on the management of Cumhuriyet newspaper to abandon this erroneous decision as soon as possible and to comply with the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement they have signed,” they continued.
Journalists also joined the union and stated that they are not stepping back. "We do not recognize this decision," they said. The journalist called the day of their dismissal as 'the darkest day' of Cumhuriyet's history.
The union stated that in a meeting on November 16, 2021, 'at least 15 people were decided to be expelled and the Editor-in-Chief Aykut Küçükkaya was asked to submit a proposal. Despite Aykut's effort to prevent anyone from being sacked after the meeting, he was not taken into account.
The CFWIJ condemns these unfair actions. Cumhuriyet is one of the prestigious newspapers where critical voices still exist. Turkey is at a time that press freedom is almost being destroyed by the escalating crackdown. Such a decision is unacceptable where journalists continue doing their job under difficult conditions in the country. We demand the immediate reinstatement of the dismissed journalists from the Cumhuriyet administrators.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism closely monitors the incidents in Turkey with great concern. Since March 8, Women's Day, police violence against women journalists increasingly continues in the country. As the coalition, we urge the Turkish state to provide a free environment for journalists. Following the news is our most fundamental democratic right to report. We demand the immediate release of our detained colleagues. Journalism is not a crime. Journalism cannot be prevented.
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