Journalist Sedef Kabaş, charged with "insulting the president" after she recited a Circassian proverb on live television, has been in prison since 22 January 2022.
This statement was originally published on womeninjournalism.org on 9 February 2022.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism (CFWIJ) and 37 press freedom organizations and journalists call on Turkey to release senior journalist Sedef Kabaş. Charged with “insulting the president”, after she used a popular Circassian proverb on a live television segment, Sedef was sent to prison on January 22, 2022. The unfounded imprisonment of the noted journalist was met with widespread condemnation from local and international press freedom organizations as well as rights organizations and press freedom defenders. Yet, the Turkish government and judiciary appear relentless and Sedef remains behind bars.
On January 14, 2022, while discussing President Erdoğan on a show called “The Arena of Democracy”, hosted by pro-opposition TV channel TELE1, Sedef said, “Cattle does not become a king when it enters a palace, but the palace becomes a barn”. Her remark prompted a backlash from government officials and pro-Erdoğan corners. The journalist was arrested at her home by law enforcement officers at around 2 AM, on the night of January 21.
Sedef has since clarified that she was using a proverb and maintains that it was not intended as an insult to the president. When she was brought before the court on January 22, the court dubbed her a “flight risk” and ordered her imprisonment. On January 26, the court rejected her lawyer’s appeal for her release. The journalist is currently being held in Bakırköy Women’s Prison in İstanbul.
Meanwhile, TELE1 was fined for the episode for “inciting hatred” by the country’s telecommunications watchdog RTÜK, which also banned the show for five episodes.
Sedef, a renowned political journalist, frequently appears on political talk shows and television segments hosted by the few opposition television stations remaining in Turkey. As a former television host herself, she has amassed a following for her journalistic work. She now runs her own channel on YouTube, Sedef Kabaş TV, on which she invites guests and discusses politics. The channel has over 89,000 subscribers. At least 912,000 accounts also follow the journalist on Twitter.
Her arrest and subsequent imprisonment on a charge so frivolous reflect the dire state of press freedom in the country. Erdoğan, dubbed a press freedom predator by international media freedom watchdog Reporters sans frontières (RSF), has propagated a hostile attitude towards journalists since he came to power. The country has witnessed an increasingly declining space for free speech and press freedom in the past decade, with state institutions, the law and judiciary, all weaponized against dissenting voices. Journalists, activists and opponents to the incumbent government, as well as citizen protestors, have been dealt with a heavy hand, with police brutality, legal harassment and imprisonments becoming the norm.
In the same vein, scores of critical journalists, human rights defenders, activists and political opponents have been hit with the charge of “insulting the president”. A conviction for this charge can carry a sentence of up to four years in jail. Moreover, according to Article 299 of the Turkish penal code, an added penalty may be imposed on the defendant if the insult was made in public. The law has been criticized widely but to no avail. In October 2021, the European Court of Human Rights called on Turkey to change the law but the authorities continue to weaponize this law against critics and opponents.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism and the undersigned organizations and individuals view Sedef’s arrest as an extension of the Turkish government’s intolerance of free speech and media freedom. We call on Turkey to cease its attacks on the free press, which is essential for the success of any democracy. The CFWIJ and the undersigned demand the immediate release of Sedef Kabaş and condemn the fine imposed on TELE1.
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.
