ISTANBUL- Drawing attention to the World Press Freedom Day, International press organizations said: "The country's backwardness in press freedom was due to the attacks on the Kurdish press."

 

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) organized a press conference at Aynalı Geçit Art Gallery in Beyoğlu for the May 3 World Press Freedom Day. Many journalists attended the meeting as well as representatives of the International Press Institute (IPI), European Center for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

 

Speaking first at the meeting, IPI Vice President Emre Kızılkaya stated that journalists in Turkey are facing a storm of physical, judicial and legislative threats. Kızılkaya also pointed out that there is a police force that uses physical violence against journalists under the guise of impunity.

 

'ATTACK ON KURDISH JOURNALISTS REVEALS THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS IN TURKIYE"

 

Underlining that Turkey has gone much further back in terms of freedom of the press compared to previous years, Kızılkaya said: "The main reason for this situation stemmed from the government's pressure on Kurdish journalists. There is pressure on the Mesopotamia Agency (MA). Nearly 50 Kurdish journalists were arrested during the year. This heavy picture is a scene seen in authoritarian countries such as China, Russia and Iran, which have reached the level of dictatorship. Now, the arrest of our Kurdish journalist friends will cause a disruption in the flow of information in the election campaign.”

 

JOURNALISTS ARE UNDER ATTACK

 

Stating that on Saturday, 6 journalists were battered and taken into custody in the press statement made on the detained and arrested journalists, Kızılkaya said: "A criminal complaint was filed yesterday that journalist Sedat Yılmaz was subjected to violence while in custody. Exposure of journalists to violence by security forces is one of the simplest problems to be solved. It can be resolved with a circular. However, it is not resolved, on the contrary, circulars are issued. There were 34 physical attacks against at least 72 journalists in a year.”