US human rights report accuses Turkish gov't of limiting free press

Although the law provides for freedom of speech and of the press, the government continued to limit these freedoms in occasional cases, the report issued in Washington.Â

 

"Senior government officials, including Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, made statements during the year strongly criticizing the press and media business figures, particularly following the publishing of reports on alleged corruption in entities in Germany connected to the ruling party," the report said.

 

The report also referred to the cancellation of press licenses of six journalists by the Prime Ministry in November claiming that the journalists had reported inaccurate content.

 

"Several large holding companies, which owned news agencies in the country, were concerned over losing business opportunities if their journalists wrote articles critical of the government. One journalist reported that his senior management discouraged the company's journalists from writing articles critical of the AKP or its members," the report said without naming any group.

 

Last week, Dogan Yayin was issued a fine of close to $500 million and back-taxes after an investigation by tax authorities, which Turkey's leading press association said was aimed at silencing critical reporting.

 

Dogan, which owns top selling dailies Hurriyet, a news agency and broadcasters, has been the target of harsh criticism from Erdogan, who has called on supporters not to buy the group's newspapers after they ran stories alleging government corruption.

Dogan Yayin, which controls almost half of Turkey's print and broadcasting media, reported on a trial in Germany last year involving an Islamic charity accused of embezzling donations and sending funds to a Turkish pro-government media outlet.

 

Erdogan has denied the corruption allegations and the Finance Ministry has said the Dogan fine was the result of a routine tax inspection and was not politically motivated.

 

CENSORSHIP AND HARASSMENT 

The U.S. report also said police harassed and beat journalists during demonstrations, adding that "authorities ordered raids of newspaper offices, closed newspapers temporarily, issued fines, or confiscated newspapers for violating speech codes."

 

The report also found evidence of censorship on the Internet, where hundreds of websites, including the popular YouTube, have been blocked in Turkey.

 

"There were some restrictions on Internet access. Government authorities on rare occasions accessed Internet user records to protect "national security, public order, health, and decency" or to prevent a crime. Police must obtain authorization from a judge or, in emergencies, the highest administrative authority before taking such action," the report said.