Journalism is under siege in Turkey as trial begins for 17 defendants from leading newspaper
Hundreds of activists, lawyers and observers packed an Istanbul courthouse Monday as prosecutors began laying out an indictment against 17 people from Turkey’s leading secular newspaper, Cumhuriyet, including its senior editorial staff.
The defendants are alleged to be a part of various terror organizations, but the majority of the evidence hinges on editorial policies at the newspaper, which the government says portrayed the ruling AK Party in a negative light. The case is part of a broader crackdown by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on independent journalism in Turkey.
The defendants were cheered by supporters as they entered the courtroom, which was standing-room-only for most the day-long hearing. Representatives from Reporters Without Borders, the International Press Institute, PEN International and a slew of other international rights groups were in attendance. The hearing is expected to continue through this week.
Police began detaining Cumhuriyet’s top staff in October, but it took six months before prosecutors produced an indictment against the group, which includes columnists, reporters, a cartoonist, and executives from the foundation that owns the paper. Cumhuriyet has continued to publish — with blank spaces marking the spots where work from the detained writers would normally have appeared.