Çetin Kurşun, a reporter for the shuttered Kurdish-language newspaper Azadiya Welat, was imprisoned pending trial on February 21, 2018, on the charge of “aiding a terrorist organization without being its member.”
Kurşun was taken into custody on February 6 along with his brother, Sedat, during a police raid on their house in the Kızıltepe district of the Mardin province.
On February 20, the Kurşun brothers gave their statements before the prosecutor, who referred the brothers to the night court, requesting their arrest. The court released Sedat Kurşun while it jailed the journalist Çetin Kurşun pending trial.
Kurşun was sent to the Mardin Prison.
Final defense statements begin in “FETÖ media” trial
The 25th High Criminal Court of Istanbul on February 22, 2018, started hearing the final defense statements at the latest hearing of the case publicly known as the “FETÖ media trial.”
Twenty-nine journalists, including former T24 columnist Murat Aksoy and former singer and newspaper columnist Atilla Taş, are standing trial on “membership in a terrorist organization” in the case. Nineteen of the defendants are in pretrial detention.
Final defense statements of eight defendants, Abdullah Kılıç, Ali Akkuş, Atilla Taş, Bünyamin Köseli, Bayram Kaya, Ahmet Memiş, Muhammet Sait Kuloğlu and Davut Aydın, who gave his statement via his lawyer, were heard on February 22, during the first session of the hearing, monitored in the courtroom by P24.
The court ruled at the end of Thursday’s hearing that imprisoned defendant Emre Soncan’s file is separated from this case to be merged with a newly initiated case against him.
The hearing will continue with the second session on February 23.
Former MAZLUMDER president sentenced to 2.5 years in prison
Human rights defender and journalist Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, the former president of the Association for Human Rights and Solidarity for the Oppressed (MAZLUMDER), was sentenced to two years and six months in prison on February 21, 2018, for one of his posts on social media.
The charges against Gergerlioğlu involved “praising the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK)” in his social media posts and articles he wrote for various news websites.
The 2nd High Criminal Court of Kocaeli convicted Gergerlioğlu, who is also a contributor to the online news outlet Artı Gerçek, of “conducting propaganda for a terrorist organization” via his social media account.
Gergerlioğlu said his lawyers will appeal the verdict.
2 newspaper distributors detained in Van
Şükran Erdem and Mizgin Fendik, two employees for the pro-Kurdish newspapers Welat and Özgürlükçü Demokrasi, were taken into custody on February 22, 2018 in the eastern province of Van.
Both Erdem and Fendik were taken into custody during morning hours by police as they were distributing the newspapers to subscribers. Neither the police station to which the two distributors were taken nor the grounds for detention have been disclosed.
Prosecutor appeals verdict on CHP lawmaker Berberoğlu
An Istanbul prosecutor on February 22 appealed the prison sentence handed down on February 13, 2018, to main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Enis Berberoğlu, saying the lawmaker should have been found guilty on “espionage” charges rather than “disclosing government secrets.”
Berberoğlu was sentenced to a reduced term of five years and 10 months in jail on February 13 by an appellate court, which convicted Berberoğlu of disclosing government secrets, at the conclusion of his retrial in the so-called “MIT [National Intelligence Agency] trucks case.”
Berberoğlu, a former journalist, was initially given a 25-year sentence in June for his alleged role in the publication of a news report in Cumhuriyet newspaper, which suggested that the Turkish government might have sent weapons to armed groups in Syria on trucks operated by MİT. But the Second Chamber of the Istanbul Regional Court of Law, an appellate court, overturned the verdict and ordered the retrial of Berberoğlu.
Berberoğlu’s lawyers said they would appeal the February 13 verdict. Berberoğlu is currently in the Maltepe Prison in Istanbul because of this conviction.
Journalists in prison in Turkey (as of February 22, 2018)
Çetin Kurşun’s imprisonment pending trial on February 21 has brought the number of jailed journalists in Turkey to 155. For the full list, click here.
1 Abdulkadir Turay, DİHA reporter
2 Abdullah Kaya, DİHA
3 Abdullah Kılıç, Habertürk
4 Abdullah Özyurt, Zaman reporter
5 Abdulvahap İş (Freelance journalist)
6 Ahmet Altan
7 Ahmet Feyzullah Özyurt
8 Ahmet Memiş, Gazeteci, Haberdar news website
9 Ahmet Metin Sekizkardeş, Zaman journalist
10 Ahmet Şık, Cumhuriyet reporter
11 Ahmet Turan Alkan, Zaman
12 Ahmet Yavaş, TRT (Erzurum)
13 Akın Atalay, Pres. of Cumhuriyet Foundation Executive Board
14 Alaattin Güner, Cihan media director
15 Ali Ahmet Böken, TRT News coordinator
16 Ali Aşikar – Azadiya Welat
17 Ali Babür Boysal, Zaman page designer
18 Ali Bulaç, former Zaman columnist
19 Ali Sönmez Kayar, ETHA reporter
20 Ali Ünal, Zaman columnist
21 Ali Yüce, TRT Radio broadcasts chief
22 Arafat Dayan, Demokratik Ulus
23 Aslı Ceren Aslan, Özgür Gelecek
24 Ayhan Demir, Çaldıran News Agency
25 Ayşe Nazlı Ilıcak
26 Ayşenur Parıldak, Zaman, Haberdar
27 Aytekin Gezici, journalist/writer
28 Aziz İstegün, Diyarbakır Zaman representative
29 Barış Ceyhan, Özgürlükçü Demokrasi employee
30 Bayram Kaya, Zaman reporter
31 Behram Kılıç
32 Beytullah Özdemir, Zaman Düzce bureau chief
33 Burak Ekici, Birgün
34 Burçin Dokgöz, former Zaman and Çorum reporter
35 Cemal Azmi Kalyoncu, Journalists and Writers’ Foundation
36 Ceren Taşkın, Hatay’ın Sesi
37 Cuma Kaya, Zaman
38 Cuma Ulus, Millet newspaper’s publications coordinator
39 Cüneyt Seza Özkan, Samanyolu TV
40 Çetin Kurşun, Azadiya Welat
41 Emin Demir, Freelancer
42 Emre Soncan, Zaman defense reporter
43 Ercan Gün, Fox TV
44 Erdal Süsem, Eylül magazine editor
45 Erdal Şen, former Meydan managing editor
46 Erdoğan Alayamut, Dihaber reporter
47 Erol Yüksel (TRT News Department vice president))
48 Erol Zavar, Odak magazine, owner and newsroom director
49 Fahrettin Kılıç, Özgür Toplum
50 Faruk Akkan, Cihan news agency
51 Ferhat Çiftçi, Azadiya Welat Gaziantep bureau chief
52 Fevzi Yazıcı
53 Gökçe Fırat Çulhaoğlu, Türksolu columnist
54 Gurbet Çakar, Hevi women’s magazine
55 Gültekin Avcı
56 Habip Güler, Zaman reporter
57 Hakan Aksel, TRT producer-director
58 Hakan Ergün, Azadiya Welat and Özgür Gündem distributor
59 Hakan Taşdelen
60 Halil İbrahim Mert, TRT (Erzurum)
61 Hamit Dilbahar, Azadiya Welat columnist
62 Hamza Günerigök, TRT
63 Hanım Büşra Erdal, Zaman reporter and columnist
64 Hasan Duman, Özgürlükçü Demokrasi distributor
65 Hatice Duman, Atılım newspaper’s owner and managing editor
66 Havva Cuştan, ETHA reporter
67 Hayati Yıldız, Azadiya Welat
68 Haydar Ergül, Demokratik Modernite editor
69 Hidayet Karaca, Samanyolu Media Group President
70 Hüseyin Aydın, Cihan reporter
71 Hüseyin Turan, Zaman columnist
72 İbrahim Kareyeğen, responsible editor for Zaman
73 İdris Okur, Cihan New Agency Çorum reporter
74 İdris Sayılgan, DİHA
75 İdris Yılmaz
76 İshak Karakaş, Hakın Nabzı editor in chief
77 İsmail Efe, local press advisor in İzmir
78 İsmail Ersan, Anatolia news agency
79 İsminaz Temel, ETHA editor
80 Kamuran Sunbat, DİHA Çukurova reporter (formerly)
81 Kemal Demir, TV 10
82 Kemal Özer, Evrensel
83 Kenan Karavil, Radyo Dünya editor-in-chief
84 Mehmet Ali Ay
85 Mehmet Altan
86 Mehmet Baransu, Taraf columnist/reporter
87 Mehmet Dener, Şanlıurfa.com editor-in-chief
88 Mehmet Güleş, DİHA
89 Mehmet Gündem
90 Mehmet Kuru, Zaman Eskişehir reporter
91 Mehmet Özdemir, Zaman columnist
92 Meltem Oktay, DİHA reporter
93 Mete Cem Bahtiyar, former BirGün reporter
94 Mikail Barut, Özgür Halk former editor
95 Miktat Algül, Mezitli FM General Publications Coordinator
96 Mizgin Çay – Radyo Karacadağ
97 Muhammet Taşçılar, Şanlıurfa.com editor-in-chief
98 Muhsin Pilgir, Zaman and Cihan news agency
99 Murat Avcıoğlu, Zaman
100 Murat Çapan, Nokta
101 Murat Dağdeviren (Demokrat Gebze owner)
102 Murat Sabuncu, Editor-in- Chief
103 Mustafa Erkan Acar, Bugün news editor,
104 Mustafa Gök, Ankara bureau chief for Ekmek ve Adalet magazine
105 Mustafa Ünal, Zaman
106 Mutlu Çölgeçen, Millet, newsroom coordinator
107 Mutlu Özay, Cihan reporter
108 Mümtazer Türköne, Zaman columnist
109 Nadir Yücel, Çorum Yıldız (local) Editor-in-Chief
110 Nedim Türfent,DİHA
111 Nizamettin İzgi (Batman Newspaper’s owner)
112 Nuh Gönültaş
113 Nuri Durna, TRT
114 Nuri Yeşil, Azadiya Welat Dersim bureau chief
115 Nurullah Kaya, G.antep Zaman representative
116 Oğuz Usluer, Habertürk former broadcasts coordinator
117 Osman Yakut, Zaman Antalya
118 Ömer Oruç, Cihan newspaper
119 Özcan Keser (TRT reporter)
120 Rabia Özkaya, Özgür Halk
121 Ramazan Alkan, Yeni Akit reporter
122 Resul Cengiz, Denizli reporter with Zaman
123 Sadık Demir – Radyo Karacadağ
124 Sait Gürka Tuzlu, Cihan reporter
125 Salih Erbekler – Radyo Karacadağ
126 Sami Tunca, Mücadele Birliği magazine Managing Editor
127 Seda Taşkın, Mesopotamia News Agency reporter
128 Semiha Mete, Özgürlükçü Demokrasi reporter and distributor
129 Serhat Şeftali, Zaman regional bureau chief for the Med region
130 Serkan Aydemir, Bitlis Aktüel reporter
131 Seyid Kılıç, TRT News
132 Seyithan Akyüz, Azadiya Welat Adana bureau chief
133 Şahabettin Demir, DİHA reporter
134 Şahin Alpay, Zaman columnist
135 Şeref Yılmaz, Irmak TV
136 Şerife Oruç, DİHA reporter
137 Tahsin Kürklü, Zaman – head of Logistics Department
138 Togay Okay, Özgür Gelecek
139 Tuncer Çetinkaya, Zaman Antalya
140 Turgut Usul, TRT reporter
141 Ufuk Şanlı, former Vatan columnist
142 Ünal Tanık, Rota Haber editor-in-chief
143 Vahit Yazgan, İzmir Zaman bureau chief
144 Veli Büyükşahin, TV10 executive
145 Veli Haydar Güleç, TV10 executive
146 Yakup Çetin, Zaman reporter
147 Yakup Şimşek, Zaman, marketing director
148 Yalçın Güler, TRT (Erzurum)
149 Yasir Kaya, Fenerbahçe TV, formerly
150 Yener Dönmez, Habervaktim news website
151 Yetkin Yıldız, Aktif Haber website editor
152 Yılmaz Kahraman, Özgür Halk editor
153 Zafer Özsoy
154 Zehra Doğan, Jinha
155 Ziya Ataman, DİHA reporter
For a full list of all the imprisoned journalists in Turkey, visit this spreadsheet. Lists of all of the foundations and associations as well as media outlets shut down can also be found at the same link, although on different tabs of the same spreadsheet.
