Turkey: Inhumane Torture Continues To Arrested Journalists From Jinnews And Mesopotamia Agency
Location: Turkey
Date: October 26, 2020Available in: 🇹🇷 Türkçe
The journalists, who were arrested on October 9, 2020, from Jinnews reporter Sehriban Abi, journalist Nazan Sala and Mesopotamia Agency correspondents Adnan Bilen and Cemil Ugur are facing brutal conditions in prison. Particularly, the journalists two of which are women, have been tortured inhumanly, as they are being held in male ward and facing inconvenient conditions. The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the provided inhumane conditions and demands all the essential needs are fulfilled immediately.
On October 6, 2020, the journalists Sehriban and Nazan were detained during the raid at the Mesopotamia Agency’s Van office. Four days after, they were arrested for reporting about Kurdish villagers named Servet Turgut and Osman Siban who were tortured and thrown off from a national army helicopter. One of the victims of the torture, Servet Turgut, died from his injuries on September 30.
CFWIJ documented that the arrested women journalists are facing malicious conditions in prison and these elements are unacceptable for human rights. Despite the pandemic, in their 14 days quarantine, we understand their basic needs are not provided and they are being kept in unhygienic conditions. Regardless of the cold weather conditions in Van, the journalists are being kept without any necessities to keep them warm.
Speaking to Mesopotamia Women Journalists Platform Spokesperson Ayşe Güney, expressed her concerns about the brutal tortures and added that the conditions of the arrested journalist are unacceptable and it is fully against human rights. She told the CFWIJ, “The manner of the detention and arrests are unacceptable in terms of journalism and also it is unacceptable for press freedom and the rights of reporting. Basically, we consider these systematic restrictions against journalism and the rights of journalism.”
CFWIJ believes journalism is not a crime and has full awareness that Sehriban Abi and Nazan Sala did not commit a crime but they were doing their jobs in exposing the truth. We condemn the threats that the arrest journalists are facing now and demand all the essential needs fulfilled immediately.
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The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ. Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org
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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