As the Turkish authorities prepare to resume the emblematic Cumhuriyet newspaper trial tomorrow in Istanbul, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) again urges them to drop all proceedings against journalists in Turkey who are being prosecuted for political reasons.
RSF"s Turkey representative, Erol Önderoğlu, and the head of its German section, Christian Mihr, will be at the Istanbul law courts tomorrow to follow the trial, which has become an emblem of press freedom violations in Turkey, and to express their solidarity with the 18 Cumhuriyet journalists and administrators on trial.
Most of the defendants have been released conditionally in the course of the trial but three - well-known reporter Ahmet Şık, Cumhuriyet publisher Mehmet Murat Sabuncu and CumhuriyetFoundation executive board president Akin Atalay - are still in prison and have been there for more than a year.
"The previous hearings have clearly exposed the completely baseless nature of these spurious proceedings," RSF said. "It is with the utmost firmness that we reiterate our call for the immediate release of the journalists still held and for the charges to be dropped against all of the defendants in this trial."
The Cumhuriyet journalists and administrators on trial are facingsentences ranging from seven and a half to 43 years in prison for criticizing the Turkish authorities and for supposedly defending what the government regards as three "terrorist" organizations: the movement led by the Muslim preacher Fethullah Gülen, the Kurdistan Workers" Party (PKK), and a small far-left group known as the DHKP/C.
The ideologies of these three organizations could not be more disparate and all three were constantly criticized by the newspaper. The indictment is riddled with factual errors and is based above all on misinterpreted newspaper articles and insignificant meetings between journalists and sources or partners.
Turkey is ranked 155th out of 180 countries in RSF"s 2017 World Press Freedom Index. The already worrying media situation has become critical under the state of emergency proclaimed after a coup attempt in July 2016. Around 150 media outlets have been closed, mass trials are being held and the country now holds the world record for the number of professional journalists detained.
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I would like to briefly discuss a highly important reform initiated by the Azerbaijani government 10 years ago but remains incomplete to this day.
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In our society, there is no place under the sun for enlightened people. In our society, the place for enlightened individuals is in dark basements. People who ought to spread light are subjected to curses. Their only weapon is their bright ideas. Their only crime relates to daring to uncover truths hidden beneath the societal fog, bringing them to light and acquainting the community with them. Natig Javadli was such a person, a journalist with a historical consciousness and an enlightening activity.
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To welcome 2025 and to mark Azerbaijan’s International Solidarity Day, we are pleased to share this message from Ambassador Libby
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Alaskar Mammadli, a well-known lawyer and media expert, has issued a message to fellow citizens on the occasion of Azerbaijanis' Solidarity Day and New Year from his prison cell, where he has been held since March 2024. Mammadli, arrested on charges of currency smuggling, has denied the accusations, which international media and human rights organizations have labeled politically motivated.
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