London – Fearing the increase in censorship in Turkey, twenty-three international press and freedom of expression organizations demanded the immediate rejection of the draft law on “disinformation and fake news”, which was presented to the parliament on May 27.
The proposal, which was met with anger, was seen as an attempt to expand online censorship and criminalize the free flow of information in the country.
In March, after the invasion of Ukraine, Russian parliament passed a fake news law Up to 15 years in prison for journalists or citizens who spread information about the war deemed false by the government – this cannot be called a war.
Erdogan government and censorship in Turkey
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s administration drew attention with his harassment of journalists and censorship, which placed Turkey 149th in the press freedom ranking of Reporters Without Borders’ 149th among 180 countries this year.
In the joint letter addressed to parliamentarians in Turkey, International Federation of Journalists, Federation of Journalists Without Borders, World Association of Newspapers (WAN-IFRA), Article 19, Coalition for Women in Journalism (CFWIJ) and US PEN are among the signatories. clubs; Norway and Sweden, among other organisations.
The bill threatens those found guilty of deliberately publishing “disinformation and fake news” with up to three years in prison in order to instill fear and panic, endanger the country’s internal and external security, public order and the general health of the society.
Citizens of Turkey subject to censorship and punishment
According to the signatories, the definition of disinformation and ‘intent’ is so vague that it puts millions of internet users in Turkey at risk of criminal action for publishing information that has not been approved by the government.
“When placed in the hands of Turkey’s highly politicized judiciary, the law can become another tool to harass journalists and activists and lead to widespread self-censorship on the Internet,” the statement said.
The bill would also increase any penalty by 50% when posting information from anonymous user accounts.
“This severely undermines anonymity on the internet and further frightens those who want to publish evidence of corruption and abuse of power but fear the consequences of going public,” the organizations said.
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The ruling alliance claims the bill is in line with the European Union’s Digital Services Act and General Data Protection Regulation. However, according to the joint letter, there is no such provision in any of these laws.
Turkey laws may support government-supporting media
Another issue that worries the institutions is that the project submits news sites to the Press Law (Law Basin). This gives its journalists access to official press accreditation and public advertising funds through the official Press Advertisement Agency (BIK).
But in practice this would allow the government to fund pro-government news sites while excluding critical media accused of violating disinformation law.
In the joint letter, it was stated that the government will hold a consultation with international digital platforms, but has not met with representatives of the media, editors, associations or journalism unions, although these are the most affected groups and their members. by the crisis. legislation.
The bill is currently in Parliament. “However, the role of parliament has been so heavily undermined by the presidential system that the bill is rushed without due consideration or debate and risks being passed quickly within a few days,” the signatories said.
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The document stresses that disinformation is an important issue and must be addressed, “but not at the expense of restricting journalists’ rights and the public’s rights to freedom of expression.”
It stresses that such initiatives should be developed in close consultation with the media and other interested parties and include adequate guarantees for freedom of expression and independent journalism to prevent their abuse by the Turkish government to impose arbitrary censorship.
Status of press freedom in Turkey
In the global press freedom index of Reporters Without Borders, Turkey stands out with its authoritarianism and the Erdogan administration’s control of the media, which prompts the public to seek other sources.
With 90% of the national media under state control, the public has been using critical or independent media with various political views such as FoxTV, Halk TV, Tele1, Sözcü, as well as local news sites or (BBC Turkish, VOA Turkish, Deutsche Welle Turkish, etc.) , to learn about the effects of the economic and political crisis in the country.
The authors of the document point out that as the 2023 elections approach, Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “hyperpresidential” system does not hesitate to attack journalists to hide the country’s economic and democratic collapse and consolidate its political base.
But they point out that neither the semi-systematic censorship of the internet, nor the abusive prosecutions of critical media, nor the instrumentalization of justice have so far allowed Erdogan to regain his popularity index affected by corruption cases.
“Discrimination against journalists and critical media, such as deprivation of press cards, is common.
Judges under government orders are trying to limit democratic debate by censoring online articles that mainly deal with corruption cases. This context makes it difficult to publish quality information.”
RSF also claims that “insult” cases are sometimes brought against journalists who question religious figures.
And stories about domestic violence or other forms of abuse, especially when produced by female journalists, can spark hate campaigns on social media.
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source: Noticias
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