Muzzling independent media in Turkey

As a result, questions are being raised whether Turkey, whose current government is the product of the ballot box, an essential element in any democracy, is ready to be part of the tradition of tolerating and accepting multiplicity of views, including dissent, which Western societies that Turkey aspires to be part of, are noted for.  […]

As a result, questions are being raised whether Turkey, whose current government is the product of the ballot box, an essential element in any democracy, is ready to be part of the tradition of tolerating and accepting multiplicity of views, including dissent, which Western societies that Turkey aspires to be part of, are noted for.  The implication of this throwback to authoritarianism in Turkey has caused widespread expressions of concern and condemnation among many journalists unions within and outside the country.
Last week Sunday, Turkish police launched a series of arrests of journalists and other media workers – including the editor of the country’s biggest-selling daily paper – in an apparent attempt to purge opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The arrest of Ekrem Dumanli, the editor-in-chief of Zaman newspaper, was broadcast live on public television. Among the other people seized in the raids were a soap opera scriptwriter and other television drama staff; the head of a company which owns a major television channel; and former and current senior policemen. The European Union condemned the actions in unusually strong words.
“The police raids and arrests of a number of journalists and media representatives in Turkey are incompatible with the freedom of media, which is a core principle of democracy,” said Federica Mogherini, EU foreign policy chief, and Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn in a joint statement. This operation goes against the European values and standards Turkey aspires to be part of,” they said.
The president of the New York-based Turkish Cultural Centre (TCC), Sadri Altınok, condemned the arrests and said the crackdown on the media was not based on evidence. Altınok said the media are not an enemy of the government but the protectors of democracy. He argued that the government could not tolerate criticism coming from the media following the corruption investigation that was made public on December 17 of last year, which implicated members of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and their relatives, and that the government had initiated the raid on the media in response to the criticism.
The arrests follow a long campaign against affiliates of an exiled Turkish religious leader, Fetullah Gulen, who lives in the United States but whose movement, known as Hizmet, used to run schools across the country and still has widespread support. The movement also runs schools and health institutions in many other countries, including Nigeria. Until the two men fell out, Mr Gulen was an ally of Mr Erdogan, who was prime minister for ten years before being elected president this year and is considered to be Turkey’s most powerful politician.
Erdoğan has meanwhile defended the government’s action.  Speaking at a symposium in Ankara which critical news outlets were barred from covering, the president asserted that “nowhere in the world is the media as free as they are in Turkey”.  He said at the Great Turkey Symposium on Friday that a group of journalists in Turkey were involved in terrorism and even murder. Commenting on the December 14 detention of journalists, among who was also Samanyolu Broadcasting Group General Manager Hidayet Karaca, Erdoğan declared that they were detained “for supporting an illegal organization.”
Last year’s corruption allegations against top officials of the government and Erdoğan’s close friends caused weeks of protests that nearly brought down the government. Many arrests of police officers and scores of opposition members followed thereafter. But that should not be the response of a responsible government. The government, and the country as a whole, is helped by open inquiries into cases of corruption and abuse of office and punishing those involved. Making blanket terrorism accusation against political opponents and the private media in a systematic move to squelch dissent harms the country in the long run and does the government no good.
Mr Erdoğan should immediately order the release all media professionals in detention or the government must produce evidence against them in court. He may be the most successful and most powerful politician in Turkey’s recent history; but Erdoğan risks tarnishing that record if he does not retrace his authoritarian steps.