ELİF AKGÜL

Istanbul- Journalists’ organizations have released their reports on the freedom of the press, rights violations against journalists in 2021. All reports show that the number of killed journalists decreased in 2021. But according to the report released by the Press Emblem Campaign, at least 1,400 media workers died of Covid-19 in 2021. We spoke to Özge Yurttaş, secretary-general of the Press and Printing House Workers' Union of Turkey (DİSK Basın-İş) about attacks on journalists. Özge Yuttaş stated that building a society in which freedom of press and expression is established and journalists can report freely is as essential as legal measures to prevent violence against journalists.

RSF: 488 journalists imprisoned, 46 killed in 2021

According to the report released by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF), 46 journalists were killed around the world in 2021. According to the RSF, this is the lowest in the last 20 years. The two countries where the most journalists were killed were Mexico and Afghanistan; seven journalists were killed in Mexico and six journalists in Afghanistan in 2021, according to the report. “The number of journalists detained in connection with their work has never been this high since RSF began publishing its annual round-up in 1995. 488 journalists were imprisoned around the world, 60 of them were women. ” the report says.

CPJ: 24 journalists killed, 293 jailed

According to the report of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), at least 24 journalists died due to their work around the world in 2021. One of them was Mina Khairi, a female journalist from Afghanistan. The number of reporters jailed for their work hit a new global record of 293, up from a revised total of 280 in 2020, according to the report. Turkey, once the world’s worst jailer of journalists, is now ranked sixth in the CPJ census after releasing 20 prisoners in the last year.

PEC: At least 1,400 media workers died of Covid-19

The Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) announced that the number of killed journalists decreased by 14 percent in 2021. 79 media employees were killed in 29 countries, at least 1,400 media workers died of Covid-19 in 2021, 1940 media workers died of Covid-19 since March 1, 2020, according to the report of the PEC. “Latin America leads with half of the victims or 954 deaths. Asia follows with 556 dead, ahead of Europe 263, then Africa 98 and North America 69,” the report says.

“Journalists are targeted by state violence and civilian violence”

Özge Yurttaş, secretary-general of the Press and Printing House Workers' Union of Turkey (DİSK Basın-İş) recalled that 79 journalists have been killed in Turkey since 1905. “Journalists haven’t been killed in the last 5-6 years but violence against journalists increases in Turkey. Journalists are targeted by state violence and civilian violence while reporting,” she told us.

Recalling that journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia died in a car bomb attack near her home in October 2017 and Dutch investigative journalist Peter R de Vries was killed for their reports, Özge Yurttaş said, “We have unfortunately witnessed that journalism is the target of some crime organizations and governments. Journalists sometimes face assassinations, intimidation or suppression practices.”

“We witnessed journalists were killed by Counter-Guerrilla”

“In Turkey, many journalists were killed by unknown assailants. They became the victims of murders and assassinations,” Özge Yurttaş said, adding, “In 1996, journalist Metin Göktepe was killed. He was tortured and brutally murdered in police custody in 1996. In 1999, Ahmet Taner Kislali was assassinated with a bomb. In 2007, Hrant Dink was killed. When we look at the murders of these journalists, we see that counter-guerrilla was behind these murders. In the 1990s, workers of Özgür Gündem newspaper were targeted and killed by counter-guerrilla.”

“The policy of immunity increases violence”

Stating that the policy of immunity causes the increase of violence against journalists, Özge Yurttaş said, “We know that those who gave the order are responsible for these murders but they go unpunished. Building a society in which freedom of press and expression is established and journalists can report freely is as essential as legal measures to prevent violence against journalists.”