ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--Over the past few days, Turkey has detained or deported a number of foreign journalists and has made several complaints to European nations about incidents Ankara finds offensive, requesting action from European governments.
On Monday, authorities in Geneva stated they had received a request from Ankara to have a photograph it finds offensive be removed from an exhibition of the photographs of Demir Sönmez.
The photo was taken at a protest in Istanbul and features a banner blaming Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the death of a Turkish child. Switzerland has a law making it illegal to insult representatives of foreign states.
Swiss News Agency reported that Geneva’s city council will file a response with the Turkish consulate on Tuesday.
Ankara’s complaint to Swiss authorities comes on the heels of a similar complaint to German authorities after comedian Jan Böhmermann read a poem that was rude about Erdogan on German television. Ankara demanded criminal proceedings be launched against Böhmermann invoking an archaic German law similar to the Swiss one. Under the law, German authorities had no choice but to allow the complaint to proceed; the prosecutor will decide whether or not to press charges.
Last week, Dutch media reported that the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam had emailed Turkish organizations in the Netherlands asking them to write to the consulate informing them if anyone in the Netherlands says something derogatory about Erdogan.
“It's not clear what the Turkish government aims to achieve with this action,” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a news conference.
At least four foreign journalists have been denied entry into Turkey in the past week, according to free press advocate Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Another was detained by the police in the country.
David Lepeska, a freelance reporter writing for The Guardian and Al Jazeera among others, wrote on Instagram on Monday that he was denied entry into Turkey. “Was just hurried onto a flight to Chicago after being denied entry at Istanbul Ataturk.”
Associated Press reported that he was given no explanation from Turkish authorities.
Greek photojournalist Giorgos Moutafis was similarly denied entry to Turkey on Saturday. "I was told at the passport control that my name was on a blacklist and that I'm not allowed to enter Turkey,” Moutafis was quoted as saying by RT. “Then my passport was taken from me until the early morning. I had to spend the night in a room in the airport. The reasons why I'm on this list were not explained to me."
Moutafis is an award-winning photographer who had previously reported on the battle for the Kurdish town of Kobane in Syria.
CPJ also reported that Tural Kerimov, a journalist for the Russian site Sputnik, and Volker Schwenk, working for German broadcaster SWR, were also denied entry to Turkey recently.
On Sunday, Dutch journalist Ebru Umar, in Turkey on holiday, was released from Turkish police custody after being held overnight. She had written a column critical of Erdogan and posted comments on Twitter also critical of the president.
Another user on the social media platform informed Umar that he had called police, saying she cannot insult his president. Not long after, Umar tweeted that the police were at her door.
Speaking at a press conference in Gaziantep, Turkey on the weekend, jointly held with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after her tour of a refugee camp, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu defended Ankara’s actions, saying he valued free speech but not if it “negates respect for human dignity.”
Davutoglu expressed concern over growing extreme and racist views in Europe, “You [Europeans] do not have the right to bombard Turkey with endless questions coming, as it were, from a position of authority.” He denied that Turkey restricted free speech.
Members of the media and free speech advocates have long accused Turkey of cracking down on the press and free speech. CPJ describes the country as “one of worst jailers of journalists worldwide”.
On Monday, authorities in Geneva stated they had received a request from Ankara to have a photograph it finds offensive be removed from an exhibition of the photographs of Demir Sönmez.
The photo was taken at a protest in Istanbul and features a banner blaming Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the death of a Turkish child. Switzerland has a law making it illegal to insult representatives of foreign states.
Swiss News Agency reported that Geneva’s city council will file a response with the Turkish consulate on Tuesday.
Ankara’s complaint to Swiss authorities comes on the heels of a similar complaint to German authorities after comedian Jan Böhmermann read a poem that was rude about Erdogan on German television. Ankara demanded criminal proceedings be launched against Böhmermann invoking an archaic German law similar to the Swiss one. Under the law, German authorities had no choice but to allow the complaint to proceed; the prosecutor will decide whether or not to press charges.
Last week, Dutch media reported that the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam had emailed Turkish organizations in the Netherlands asking them to write to the consulate informing them if anyone in the Netherlands says something derogatory about Erdogan.
“It's not clear what the Turkish government aims to achieve with this action,” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a news conference.
At least four foreign journalists have been denied entry into Turkey in the past week, according to free press advocate Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Another was detained by the police in the country.
David Lepeska, a freelance reporter writing for The Guardian and Al Jazeera among others, wrote on Instagram on Monday that he was denied entry into Turkey. “Was just hurried onto a flight to Chicago after being denied entry at Istanbul Ataturk.”
Associated Press reported that he was given no explanation from Turkish authorities.
Greek photojournalist Giorgos Moutafis was similarly denied entry to Turkey on Saturday. "I was told at the passport control that my name was on a blacklist and that I'm not allowed to enter Turkey,” Moutafis was quoted as saying by RT. “Then my passport was taken from me until the early morning. I had to spend the night in a room in the airport. The reasons why I'm on this list were not explained to me."
Moutafis is an award-winning photographer who had previously reported on the battle for the Kurdish town of Kobane in Syria.
CPJ also reported that Tural Kerimov, a journalist for the Russian site Sputnik, and Volker Schwenk, working for German broadcaster SWR, were also denied entry to Turkey recently.
On Sunday, Dutch journalist Ebru Umar, in Turkey on holiday, was released from Turkish police custody after being held overnight. She had written a column critical of Erdogan and posted comments on Twitter also critical of the president.
Another user on the social media platform informed Umar that he had called police, saying she cannot insult his president. Not long after, Umar tweeted that the police were at her door.
Speaking at a press conference in Gaziantep, Turkey on the weekend, jointly held with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after her tour of a refugee camp, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu defended Ankara’s actions, saying he valued free speech but not if it “negates respect for human dignity.”
Davutoglu expressed concern over growing extreme and racist views in Europe, “You [Europeans] do not have the right to bombard Turkey with endless questions coming, as it were, from a position of authority.” He denied that Turkey restricted free speech.
Members of the media and free speech advocates have long accused Turkey of cracking down on the press and free speech. CPJ describes the country as “one of worst jailers of journalists worldwide”.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment