World Press Freedom Day ‘bittersweet’
THE Cyprus Turkish Journalists Union (KTGB) said that celebrating May 3 World Press Freedom Day was “bittersweet” due to the “recent blows to freedom of the press”.
Stating that the TRNC ranked 76th in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index, the KTGB said that North Cyprus lags “far behind modern, liberal and democratic countries”.
“Because of new blows to the freedom of the press in our country, celebrating May 3 World Press Freedom Day . . . is once again bittersweet,” the statement said.
“On this day, we remind all segments of society, especially governments, that they should respect the commitment to freedom of the press and we, the journalists, see this special day as an opportunity to think about and assess the issues of press freedom and professional ethics.”
Stating that the theme of this year’s World Press Freedom Day is “journalism under digital siege”, the KTGB said that while Unesco (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is discussing the effects of the digital revolution on journalism, “unfortunately freedom of the press is still being suppressed with primitive motives and they are trying to keep the press under control in our country”.
The statement continued: “With the recent approach of the country’s leaders towards journalists and what they put out, they show that they are far from seeing freedom of the press as a value that will benefit them one day.
“From the top of the government to the lower levels, journalists have even been accused of lying when [government officials] were questioned and/or their mistakes were revealed.
“The leaders and power groups prefer to see journalists as public relations specialists working for them and want only the news that serves them to be published.
“We are witnessing that these circles have no hesitation in trampling on the profession of journalism with such demands. However, a press in the form of a thornless rose garden dreamed of by the governments will not contribute to the country, the people they are responsible for serving, or to democracy.
“Right after our colleague and KTGB member Foreign Press Union chairman Rasıh Reşat announced that he had to resign from his job and his organisation due to political pressure from the top of the government, a lawsuit was filed by Turkey bringing charges against Avrupa newspaper’s editor-in-chief Şener Levent because of a cartoon/collage he published, despite being acquitted in the TRNC.
“Both events are indicative of the fact that freedom of the press and expression has been cut down a little more and this is troubling.”
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT USED AS A ‘BARRIER’
The statement noted that there have been efforts recently to prevent journalists from
accessing information, despite the enactment of the Freedom of Information Act in the TRNC.
“Mostly, political powers consider it a feat to prevent journalists from accessing information and documents while working on behalf of the public,” the KTGB said.
“The ‘Freedom of Information Act’, which was enacted over concern for the public obtaining information, is almost used as a barrier to journalists.
“Even bureaucrats and technical staff who do not like a question asked by a journalist say, ‘apply within the scope of the Freedom of Information Act and we will answer’ but most of the time they do not give the right answer to a question and the news is rendered ineffective because they do not respond within the time stipulated by the law.
“This is an unacceptable situation. We would like to remind [government officials] that this law was enacted so that the public can obtain information.”
Pointing to criminal cases filed against journalists because of their reporting and writing, the statement added: “The fact that the country’s leaders and those who support them financially and politically have recently put new instruments into effect in order to further suppress freedom of the press in North Cyprus has become dangerous for the profession.
“Criminal cases brought against journalists on the grounds of their news, articles and/or social media posts are concrete reflections of . . . totalitarian regimes.
“As the KTGB, we would like to emphasise once again that we are and will continue to be against all initiatives under the pretence of law that threaten or try to limit the freedom of press and expression.
“The means that the administration uses to silence the news and journalists who criticise them, reveal their mistakes, corruption, negligence and faults, are at the point of killing democracy and modern values.”