Journalists in State of Emergency – 66

 
Executives of the shuttered Hayatın Sesi television appeared before a court on May 30 for the first hearing of their trial on charges of terror propaganda.
 
Two of the three executives on trial, Mustafa Kara and İsmail Gökhan Bayram, presented their defense at the hearing, which was held at Istanbul 13th High Criminal Court, while Gökhan Çetin did not attend the session on health grounds. Kara, Bayram and Çetin are charged with “collectively making continual propaganda for a terrorist organization” based on five broadcasts in 2015 and 2016 covering three bombing attacks in Turkey, military operations in the southeastern district of Cizre and abduction of Turks working in Iraq by Shiite militants. They each face up to 7.5 years in prison if convicted.
 
Kara and Bayram both rejected the accusation that the broadcasts amounted to propaganda for different, and rival, terrorist organizations. Kara said he was charged with terror propaganda even though he, as a company owner, had no involvement in setting the editorial policy.
 
Bayram, for his part, said Hayatın Sesi always maintained an editorial policy that praised peace and rejected violence while he personally never condoned or made propaganda for terrorism.
 
The court turned down a request to reject the indictment and scheduled the next hearing for November 7.
 
BirGün executives sent to prison
 
Two executives of the leftist opposition BirGün daily, İbrahim Aydın and Berkant Gültekin, were sent to a prison in the northwestern province of Kırklareli on May 29 to serve a prison sentence handed down earlier.
 
Aydın and Gültekin were sentenced to 21 months in prison for a news story that the court deemed contained “insult to the president.” They are expected to be released in the coming days under recently amended laws which grant release on probation for those who have been given a prison term of less than 24 months.
 
Two journalists released in Antalya
 
Two journalists, Bizim Antalya local news website owner Olgun Matur and Antalya correspondent of the shuttered Zaman daily Özkan Mayda, were released pending trial on May 24.
 
Mayda and Matur are charged with “terrorist group membership,” along with 15 other people. They were released at the end of a hearing held at Antalya 2nd High Criminal Court.
 
The court also imposed a travel ban on Mayda and Matur and decided to adjourn trial until October 6.
 
French journalist held in Turkey ends hunger strike
 
French photojournalist Mathias Depardon, who was arrested on May 8 in the southeastern province of Batman and has been detained in a repatriation center in Gaziantep for three weeks, ended a hunger strike on May 27.
 
Christophe Deloire, the secretary general of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), announced the news of Depardon ending his hunger strike on his Twitter account. Deloire wrote that the French photojournalist ended his hunger strike “after he learned that a visit by a diplomat would be allowed.”
 
Depardon was arrested in Hasankeyf, a district in Batman, while doing a report for National Geographic magazine. He was transferred on May 9 to a repatriation center operated by the Directorate for Migration Affairs in Gaziantep, where he has remained ever since. On May 11, authorities issued an order for his deportation but he has remained in detention since then.
 
German officials allowed to visit journalist in prison
 
Turkish authorities have allowed German officials to visit Meşale Tolu, a German journalist for Etkin Haber Ajansı (ETHA) who is imprisoned in Turkey, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer said on May 29.
 
Tolu was arrested on April 30 in a police raid of her home in Istanbul and was placed in pre-trial detention on “terror propaganda” charges on May 6.
 
Schaefer said detention conditions of Tolu will be examined during the visit, which is planned to take place on June 2.
 
List of imprisoned journalists in Turkey
 
1          Abdulkadir Turay, DİHA reporter  
2          Abdullah Kılıç, Habertürk   
3          Abdullah Özyurt, Zaman reporter  
4          Abdulvahap İş (Freelance journalist)        
5          Abdürrahim Ersöz, Antalya 
6          Ahmet Altan  
7          Ahmet Memiş, Gazeteci, Haberdar news website 
8          Ahmet Metin Sekizkardeş, Zaman journalist         
9          Ahmet Şık, Cumhuriyet reporter    
10       Ahmet Turan Alkan, Zaman
11       Ahmet Yavaş, TRT (Erzurum)        
12       Akın Atalay, Pres. of Cumhuriyet Foundation Executive Board  
13       Alaattin Güner, Cihan media director        
14       Ali Ahmet Böken, TRT News coordinator   
15       Ali Aşikar – Azadiya Welat   
16       Ali Babür Boysal, Zaman page designer    
17       Ali Bulaç, Eski Zaman columnist     
18       Ali Konar, Azadiya Welat bureau chief      
19       Ali Ünal, Zaman columnist   
20       Ali Yüce, TRT Radio broadcasts chief         
21       Arafat Dayan, Demokratik Ulus      
22       Aslı Ceren Aslan, Özgür Gelecek     
23       Atilla Taş, Meydan columnist          
24       Ayhan Demir, Çaldıran News Agency        
25       Ayşe Nazlı Ilıcak        
26       Ayşenur Parıldak, Zaman, Haberdar          
27       Aytekin Gezici, journalist/writer     
28       Aziz İstegün, Diyarbakır Zaman representative   
29       Bayram Kaya, Zaman reporter       
30       Berkant Gültekin, Birgün     
31       Beytullah Özdemir, Zaman Düzce bureau chief   
32       Burçin Dokgöz, former Zaman and Çorum reporter        
33       Bülent Utku, Cumhuriyet Foundation board member    
34       Bünyamin Köseli, Aksiyon magazine reporter      
35       Cebrail Parıltı, Anadolu Ajansı (AA) Derik reporter         
36       Cemal Azmi Kalyoncu, Journalists and Writers’ Foundation       
37       Ceren Taşkın, Hatay'ın Sesi 
38       Cihan Acar, Bugün reporter
39       Cuma Kaya, Zaman  
40       Cuma Ulus, Millet newspaper’s publications coordinator           
41       Deniz Yücel, Die Welt           
42       Emin Demir, Freelancer      
43       Emre Soncan, Zaman defense reporter     
44       Ercan Gün, Fox TV    
45       Erdal Süsem, Eylül magazine editor          
46       Erdal Şen, former Meydan managing editor        
47       Erol Yüksel (TRT News Department vice president)       
48       Erol Zavar, Odak magazine, owner and newsroom director       
49       Fahrettin Kılıç, Özgür Toplum        
50       Faruk Akkan, Cihan news agency   
51       Ferhat Çiftçi, Azadiya Welat Gaziantep bureau chief       
52       Fevzi Yazıcı    
53       Gökçe Fırat Çulhaoğlu, Türksolu columnist           
54       Gökmen Ulu, Sözcü   
55       Gurbet Çakar, Hevi women’s magazine     
56       Gültekin Avcı 
57       Güray Tekin Öz, columnist  
58       Habip Güler, Zaman reporter
59       Hakan Aksel, TRT producer-director         
60       Hakan Ergün, Azadiya Welat and Özgür Gündem distributor    
61       Hakan Karasinir, columnist 
62       Hakan Taşdelen       
63       Halil İbrahim Mert, TRT (Erzurum)
64       Hamit Dilbahar, Azadiya Welat columnist 
65       Hamza Günerigök, TRT        
66       Hanım Büşra Erdal, Zaman reporter and columnist        
67       Hasan Duman, Özgürlükçü Demokrasi distributor          
68       Haşim Söylemez, Aksiyon columnist           
69       Hatice Duman, Atılım newspaper’s owner and managing editor           
70       Hayati Yıldız, Azadiya Welat
71       Hidayet Karaca, Samanyolu Media Group President       
72       Hülya Karakaya, Özgür Halk Managing Editor     
73       Hüseyin Aydın, Cihan reporter       
74       Hüseyin Turan, Zaman columnist  
75       İbrahim Aydın, Birgün         
76       İbrahim Balta, Zaman business editor       
77       İbrahim Kareyeğen, responsible editor for Zaman          
78       İdris Okur, Cihan New Agency Çorum reporter   
79       İdris Sayılgan, DİHA 
80       İlker İlkan, Azadiya Welat   
81       İnan Kızılkaya, Özgür Gündem Newsroom Editor
82       İsa Siyi, Haberdar     
83       İsmail Avcı, Zaman   
84       İsmail Efe, local press advisor in İzmir      
85       Kadri Gürsel, Editorial Advisor       
86       Kamuran Sunbat, DİHA Çukurova reporter (formerly)  
87       Kazım Kızıl, Kamera Sokak  
88       Kemal Sancılı, Özgür Gündem copyrights holder 
89       Kenan Karavil, Radyo Dünya editor-in-chief        
90       Lokman Erdoğan, Çorum Manşet, owner  
91       Mahir Kanaat, BirGün, head of accountingn         
92       Mediha Olgun, Sözcü           
93       Mehmet Altan           
94       Mehmet Baransu, Taraf columnist/reporter        
95       Mehmet Dener, Şanlıurfa.com editor-in-chief      
96       Mehmet Güleş, DİHA
97       Mehmet Kuru, Zaman Eskişehir reporter 
98       Mehmet Özdemir, Zaman columnist          
99       Meltem Oktay, DİHA reporter         
100     Meşale Tolu, ETHA translater         
101     Mikail Barut, Özgür Halk former editor     
102     Miktat Algül, Mezitli FM General Publications Coordinator         
103     Mizgin Çay – Radyo Karacadağ      
104     Muhammet Taşçılar, Şanlıurfa.com editor-in-chief          
105     Murat Aksoy,former Yeni Şafak columnist
106     Murat Avcıoğlu, Zaman        
107     Murat Çapan,
108     Murat Dağdeviren (Demokrat Gebze owner)       
109     Murat Sabuncu, Editor-in- Chief    
110     Musa Kart, Cartoonist          
111     Mustafa Erkan Acar, Bugün news editor   
112     Mustafa Gök, Ankara bureau chief for Ekmek ve Adalet magazine        
113     Mustafa Kemal Güngör, Cumhuriyet Foundation board member         
114     Mustafa Ünal, Zaman           
115     Mutlu Çölgeçen, Millet, newsroom coordinator    
116     Mümtazer Türköne, Zaman columnist       
117     Nadir Yücel, Çorum Yıldız (local) Editor-in-Chief 
118     Nedim Türfent,DİHA
119     Nizamettin İzgi (Batman Newspaper’s owner)    
120     Nur Ener, Yeni Asya 
121     Nuri Durna, TRT       
122     Nuri Yeşil, Azadiya Welat Dersim bureau chief    
123     Nurullah Kaya, G.antep Zaman representative    
124     Oğuz Güven, Cumhuriyet    
125     Oğuz Usluer, Habertürk former broadcasts coordinator 
126     Osman Yakut, Zaman Antalya         
127     Ozan Kaplanoğlu, Bursa Muhalif    
128     Ömer Çelik, DİHA news manager   
129     Ömer Oruç, Cihan newspaper        
130     Ömer Özdemir, Antalya eski Zaman muhabiri      
131     Önder Çelik, Cumhuriyet Foundation board member     
132     Özcan Keser (TRT reporter)           
133     Özgür Amed (Ethem Çağır), Özgür Gündem writer         
134     Rabia Özkaya, Özgür Halk   
135     Ramazan Alkan, Yeni Akit reporter
136     Resul Cengiz, Denizli reporter with Zaman           
137     Sadık Demir – Radyo Karacadağ    
138     Salih Erbekler – Radyo Karacadağ 
139     Sami Tunca, Mücadele Birliği magazine Managing Editor           
140     Selman Keleş, DİHA 
141     Serhat Şeftali, Zaman regional bureau chief for the Med region           
142     Serkan Aydemir, Bitlis Aktüel reporter      
143     Seyid Kılıç, TRT News          
144     Seyithan Akyüz, Azadiya Welat Adana bureau chief        
145     Sezgin Kartal, Sosyalist Dayanımşa magazine       
146     Şahabettin Demir, DİHA reporter  
147     Şahin Alpay, Zaman columnist        
148     Şeref Yılmaz, Irmak TV        
149     Şerife Oruç, DİHA reporter 
150     Şirin Çoban, Azadiya Welat 
151     Tahsin Kürklü, Zaman – head of Logistics Department   
152     Togay Okay, Özgür Gelecek 
153     Tunca Öğreten, former Diken editor         
154     Tuncer Çetinkaya, Zaman Antalya 
155     Turhan Günay, Chief Editor of Cumhuriyet supplement
156     Ufuk Şanlı, former Vatan columnist           
157     Ulaş Sezgin, ETHA reporter 
158     Ünal Tanık, Rota Haber editor-in-chief      
159     Vahit Yazgan, İzmir Zaman bureau chief  
160     Vedat Beki, Sözcü 18
161     Vedat Demir, former Yarına Bakış writer  
162     Yakup Çetin, Zaman reporter         
163     Yakup Şimşek, Zaman, marketing director
164     Yalçın Güler, TRT (Erzurum)          
165     Yener Dönmez, Habervaktim news website         
166     Yetkin Yıldız, Aktif Haber website editor   
167     Yılmaz Kahraman, Özgür Halk editor        
168     Zafer Özsoy   
169     Ziya Ataman, DİHA reporter