Articles by IPS Communication Foundation – Bianet
Ill-defined law to control Internet publications passed, awaiting president’s final approval
(BIANET/IFEX) – Law No 5651, which is concerned with “the preparation of Internet publications and crimes connected with these publications”, was passed by Parliament on 4 May 2007. Should the president not veto it, it will be implemented. The official justification of the law is that it aims to protect families and children from Internet […]
Radio station closed indefinitely as court affirms broadcasting council’s revocation of licence
(BIANET/IFEX) – According to representatives of the radio station Anatolia’s Voice, which started broadcasting in 1999, the administrative court in Ankara has not reversed the decision of the Supreme Council of Radio and Television (RTUK) to revoke the station’s broadcasting license. The radio station says that the court has affirmed RTUK’s decision, and has ignored […]
Newspaper editor faces charges for “insulting a public officer” over article critical of police
(BIANET/IFEX) – The editor-in-chief of the local daily newspaper “Emirdag”, Mustafa Koyuncu, is being tried on charges of “insulting a public officer” in an article. In a 12 March 2007 article entitled “”Should we enter the EU like that? They misuse their authority”, Koyuncu criticized the conduct of local police officers. Following the article’s publication, […]
BIANET’s quarterly report points to Penal Code article 301 as major barrier to free expression, amid mounting attacks on press
(BIANET/IFEX) – The following is a 3 May BIANET report: Media Report: A Sober Press Freedom Day In the first three months of the year, four new cases arising from article 301 of the Penal Code were launched while journalists mourned the loss of their colleague, Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. Rising nationalist sentiments also translated […]
“Nokta” magazine’s offices raided, files copied, premises occupied by police for four days, following critical articles about military
(BIANET/IFEX) – Weekly news magazine “Nokta”‘s editor-in-chief Alper Görmüs said on 16 April 2007 that the publishing policy of his magazine will not change despite harassment by security forces and the judiciary following critical articles about the Turkish military. On 13 April the magazine’s offices were raided by some 50 police officers, who left on […]
Court blocks access to popular website following defamation complaint
(BIANET/IFEX) – Responding to a civil complaint, an Istanbul court recently banned access to the online news source Eksisozluk ( http://www.sourtimes.org ). Adnan Oktar, a self-proclaimed religious sect leader, complained to the court that the online interactive site, where members can add and edit comments on anything, contained defamatory remarks about him. Eyup’s third court […]
Journalist, event organiser on trial, face possible imprisonment, for “insulting, humiliating security forces” in discussion panel
(BIANET/IFEX) – Ersen Korkmaz, the owner of the local newspaper “Demokrat Iskenderun”, has been on trial for four years and a half over a paper he wrote entitled “They caught the leader of the Kurds and gave him to the fascists”, for a panel organized by Turkey’s Communist Party (TKP). Korkmaz and another member of […]
Kurdistan TV correspondents in Diyarbakir harassed, spied on and threatened by authorities
(BIANET/IFEX) – Northern Iraq-based Kurdistan TV’s correspondents in Diyarbakir claim that they face arbitrary discrimination by local officials and receive random threats. The station’s Diyarbakir bureau chief Mehmet Eren told BIANET that they established the necessary infrastructure in 2006 but have been harassed since then. “Although we totally comply with the legal framework, we cannot […]