Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD: Turkish authorities have detained several journalists for reporting on the devastating earthquake that killed over 50,000 people in the country and neighbouring Syria.
Freelance journalist Mir Ali Koçer was among one of the journalists who had been summoned by Diyarbakir police for questioning. Kocer was 200 miles from the epicenter when Turkey was struck by the deadly earthquake on February 6.
He drove down to the affected area with his camera and microphone in hand to interview survivors. He shared survivor and rescuer stories on Twitter and he is now being investigated for spreading allegedly “fake news” and could face up to three years in prison.
At least four journalists are being investigated for reporting or commenting on the earthquake.
According to press freedom advocates, hundreds more have been detained, harassed, or prevented from reporting. Earthquakes in both Turkey and Syria killed at least 50,000 people.
The Turkish authorities have made no comment on the detentions. On the night of the earthquake, Koçer, who is Kurdish and writes for pro-opposition news sites such as Bianet and Duvar, was smoking on his balcony in Diyarbakir, Turkey, when his two dogs began barking.
He remembered them barking exactly like that in 2020, seconds before a smaller earthquake hit eastern Turkey. He rushed outside after hiding with the dogs under a dinner table. Koçer drove from Diyarbakir to the city of Gaziantep. He was astounded to see scenes of devastation and victims enduring freezing temperatures in towns near the quake’s epicenter.
At least 3,000 earthquake victims died in Gaziantep.
‘Provocateurs’
The influx of volunteers and rescue teams from Western Turkey moved Koçer, and he shared their stories on Twitter. Some of the survivors told him they had gone days without receiving assistance. Pro-opposition news outlets made similar complaints.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told people in earthquake-affected areas that he would rebuild their cities. But he also warned that those who propagate “fake news” and “cause social chaos” would be prosecuted, calling them “provocateurs”.
Koçer claims that while reporting from the earthquake-affected region, Diyarbakir police left a note at his apartment instructing him to go to the police station and make a statement.
He was informed at the station that he was being investigated under a recently enacted disinformation law.
He claimed that the police interrogated him about his reporting from the earthquake’s epicenter and accused him of spreading false information.
Turkey’s new law went into effect in October. It criminalized public disinformation and gave the state much broader control over news sites and social media.
The Venice Commission, the Council of Europe’s legal watchdog, said the law would limit freedom of expression. It is referred to as a “censorship law” by opposition parties.
