OSCE representative calls on to release Turkish detained journalists

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović wrote to Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on December 15 calling for the immediate release of detained journalists. Officil web-site of the OSCE informs about this. 

“Yesterday’s arrests point to a resurgence in the threats against journalists. They should be released immediately,” Mijatović said.

On 14 December, police arrested numerous members of the media during raids on a newspaper and television station.

“The arrests once again show that a thorough revision of the laws allowing for the imprisonment of journalists in Turkey is urgent. Laws should not be used to curb dissenting views in a society,” Mijatović wrote in the letter.

The Representative has repeatedly been calling for the reform of a series of laws governing media freedom in Turkey, including the provisions of the Criminal Code and the Anti-Terror legislation most often used to imprison journalists.

The Representative noted that in recent years there was a substantial decrease of imprisoned journalists in Turkey. An annual survey commissioned by her Office showed that 95 Turkish journalists were imprisoned in 2011, a number that has fallen to around 20 in 2014.

Mijatović is in Podgorica for a roundtable discussion with media representatives in Montenegro on how to improve media self-regulation in the country.