Turkish state TV comes under fire over Ergenekon suspect interview
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ANKARA - Three members of the media watchdog, the Radio and Television Supreme Council, or RTÜK, issued a written statement criticizing TRT for its Wednesday night broadcast that they say would not even have been broadcast by some small, marginal, private channels.
Turkey’s state-broadcaster, or TRT’s, decision to air a program Wednesday featuring Tuncay Güney, an alleged Ergenekon gang informer, has drawn harsh criticism.
During the show, Güney implicated hundreds of people, including the leader of main opposition party, prominent businessmen, journalists and top generals of belonging to either the gang or intelligent services.
"Grave accusations against the Republican People’s Party (CHP) were made during the program. TRT committed a crime. We are going to defend our rights and sue the TRT," Mustafa Özyürek, a CHP deputy and party spokesperson said in a written statement yesterday.
| THREAT VIA STATE ORGANS by Ertuğrul Ozkok * For the first time in my life I was threatened through a state organ. This person has been threatening us since the day we published stories that showed he was lying on many issues including claims that he is a rabbi. This is not the first threat we have received. However I want to say couple of things about TRT, the network that delivered this threat to us. TRT is the country’s state television. It survives on our taxes.Some guy comes out and says whatever he wants and puts down whomever he wants. The leader of the main opposition party is made out to be a spy, and businessmen are envisaged to be involved in shadowy relations. Army commanders are accused on ungrounded allegations. Absurd things are said about journalists. He speaks and our TRT invites him to do so as an objective referee. I believe that "reality is less harmful than being accused." TRT has been doing many positive things. But this incident revealed something important. For me, TRT was a state organ. However after watching the previous day's program, for me it is now no longer a state institution, but a "deep-state organ". It stressed the fact once again the partisanship continues to dominate. * Ertugrul Ozkok is editor-in-chief of Hurriyet Daily. |
Güney evaluated his 2001 deposition to police, in which he had first mentioned an illegal organization within the state called Ergenekon. He accused numerous prominent persons of being either a member of the so-called gang or an agent working for different intelligence services. In one of his allegations, he said Deniz Baykal, leader of the CHP for years, was in fact a member of the National Intelligence Organization, or MİT.
"The Justice and Development Party’s (or AKP) approach of battering its adversaries through any possible means is once again seen in the broadcast of the TRT. This situation is neither politically nor ethically acceptable," Özyürek said. Hakkı Süha Okay, deputy leader of the party, accused the TRT of violating laws and its own principles, in a press conference.
"The TRT and its authorities will be held accountable for this broadcast," he said. Ahmet Ersin, a CHP deputy submitted a parliamentary question to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan about the TRT broadcast. Commenting that the state broadcaster was violating the confidentiality of the investigation by airing such news programs, Ersin asked "Are the TRT and prosecutors jointly conducting the Ergenekon investigation?"
Meanwhile, three members of media watchdog the Radio and Television Supreme Council, or RTÜK, issued a written statement yesterday and criticized the TRT for its Wednesday night broadcast that would not even have been broadcast by some small, marginal, private channels. "Once a state television channel, the TRT has now became the basis for provocations," the statement read. The RTÜK is likely to probe last night’s airing, according to sources. It would be a first if the RTÜK decides to impose a sanction on the state broadcaster.
WHY EIGHT-YEAR DELAY?
In the meantime, State Minister Hayati Yazıcı stated that the deposition of Güney had been taken in 2001 and although he had asked, he had not been informed as to why no any action had been taken on these accusations since then, "What has been done with this detailed deposition? Why has it been underestimated?" he asked.