In last week, seven journalists, including our editor and reporters were taken into custody. First detention operation was conducted against journalists of Etkin News Agency and then against our agency JIN NEWS and Mesopotamya Ajansı (Mesopotamia Agency). On October 19, police raided the homes of Havva Cuştan and İsminaz Temel, reporters of Etkin News Agency (ETHA) and detained them. One day later, JINNEWS editor Sibel Yükler and reporters Duygu Erol and Habibe Eren, Mesopotamia Agency reporters Diren Yurtsever and Selman Güzelyüz were detained. On October 21, Sibel Yükler, Selman Güzelyüz and Diren Yurtsever were released. Our reporters Duygu Erol and Habibe Eren will be sent to courthouse today. No information about the reason for their detention has been obtained yet. Women journalists commented on detention of their colleagues and they demanded their colleagues to be released immediately.

 

ETHA editor Derya Okatan said, “Access of many websites were blocked during the war and then the war was started. Of course, that had a purpose. The purpose was to hide the facts from people. We asked ‘what is the worst that could happen?’ during OHAL (state of emergency) but each time we faced more aggressive attacks, we suffered more.”

 

Recalling that about 170 journalists are behind bars, Derya added, “Obviously they are attacking journalists who write facts to cover up their crimes. But we can say that this is impossible today. Now social media exists, the facts will remain in the future. They cannot keep lying for a long time. We saw the attacks on the opponent media and on us, we saw our colleagues’ press cards were burned or we saw women journalists were subjected to sexist attacks.”

 

 

Emphasizing that they need to a struggle against these attacks, Derya said, “We can do this by standing side by side. We demand our detained and jailed colleagues to be released immediately.”

 

Bianet reporter Beyza Kural commented on detention and imprisonment of journalists and she said, “The charges against our friends have not been announced, a confidentiality order has been issued on the investigation and this increases our concern. We think that their journalistic activities are the reason for being taken into custody and this situation is disturbing. We witness our colleagues’ journalism. Taking them in custody, harassing them during home raids are unacceptable. We demand our colleagues to be released immediately.”

 

Mesopotamia Agency reporter Sadiye Eser said, “Six of seven detained journalists are women and our colleagues know very well how to cover women’s news and they try to be voice of women.  In the face of such a picture, we are thinking; women’s news is desired to prevent. A confidentiality order has been issued on the investigation opened against our colleagues. We demand the reason for their detention to be announced immediately. We want to see our colleagues with us and to read their news again.”

 

Evrensel Daily reporter Eylem Nazlier said, “First we learned ETHA reporters had been detained and then we heard the reporters of JIN NEWS and Mesopotamia Agency had been detained. The ruling power is scared of the facts. It tries to hide the fact from the people. We have faced with a ruling power that wants to put the women in homes and to silence women’s voice. They think they have done this by detaining and arresting the journalists. We will continue to defend our profession against these oppressions. As women journalists, we stand by our colleagues, we witness their journalism. We aren’t scared; we will continue to write the facts whatever it may cost.”