politicsblog.org

By: Derin Acar

Since the 1950’s, the country of Turkey has been a democracy. Globally, countries recognize Turkey as a democracy and so do the people. Recently, the democracy of Turkey has been under scrutiny due to a rise of restrictions in censorship and state control over media. Despite free expression being constitutional, journalists often face arrests and lawsuits for publishing critical reports. 

If a journalist in Turkey were to write about military operations in Kurdish areas and civilian casualties, the government could accuse them of spreading “terrorist propaganda.” Additionally if a news outlet publishes a corruption scandal involving government officials, they might be accused of “disinformation.” This could lead to legal action or shutdown.

Many newspapers and television companies are owned by groups aligned with President Erdoğan’s administration. Independent news sources that refuse to align with his administration’s views have been forcibly shut down or even hit with financial penalties. With a heavily pro-government learning media landscape, the Turkish people get biased news daily. In 2016, Cumhuriyet, one of Turkey’s oldest independent newspapers, had many of its editors and reporters arrested for publishing critical stories.

Officially called the “Law on the Prevention of Disinformation and Fake News,” the Disinformation Law puts legal restrictions on press freedom in Turkey. The act, officially passed in October of 2022, criminalizes false news that could mislead or disturb the public. The punishment for disobeying this law for journalists is up to 3 years. Although this law could be interpreted positively, due to it attempting to prevent false news circulating the media, it has been taken out of context by the Government. The lines get extremely blurred between what misleading information is and information the government doesn’t want to be viewed by the Turkish Population. 

As traditional media has come under control of the government, so has the voice of journalists on the internet. The Turkish government has blocked access to independent news websites such as Yeni Yaşam and Özgür Gelecek. In 2020, Turkey passed a law requiring social media companies to appoint representatives to comply with government content removal requests. Arrests on journalists and even ordinary Turkish citizens have happened because of posts criticizing the government, specifically on economic and military operations. In January 2022, journalist Sedef Kabaş was arrested for “insulting President Erdoğan” on a live television performance. Due to the allegation, she faced charges that could result in up to 4 years in prison.  

In a functioning democracy, citizens have the right to freely express themselves and their opinions. If there are restrictions being put into place, then it’s more authoritarianism than democratic. President Erdoğan has shown characteristics of being a dictator for many years. From isolating power since 2014 to rigging elections, and even arresting his critics, he’s done it all. His actions towards silencing the Turkish media that criticize him and the government goes directly against the core principles of democracy. 

With suppression of free press, the Turkish population are unable to get unbiased information about the country they live in. This leads to uninformed participation in the government, and a cycle of Erdoğan maintaining his power. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founding father of Turkey, intended for the nation to be a democratic republic. Now, hiding behind the guise of national security and preventing misinformation, Turkey is slowly becoming an authoritarian government with a dictator.