Tag Turkey
8 Jul

Türkiye: Media freedom groups demand release of journalists detained ahead of NATO Summit

ECPMF is joined by 26 other organisations representing media freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations in expressing profound alarm at the recent wave of detentions and arrests of journalists and civil society representatives in Türkiye in the immediate lead-up to the NATO Summit in Ankara on 7-8 July.

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26 Jun

Joint Letter to NATO: Accreditation Process Excludes Independent Journalists from Summit

The undersigned press freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations are writing to express our serious concern regarding the denial of media accreditation to independent news outlets and journalists in Türkiye seeking to cover the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara on 7–8 July.

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4 Jun

Turkey: ECPMF and partner organisations call for the release of journalist İsmail Arı ahead of June 5 court hearing

The undersigned press freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations call for the immediate release of BirGün journalist İsmail Arı, who has been behind bars for 75 days. Arı is due to appear before an Ankara court on June 5, after being jailed under Turkey’s so-called “disinformation law” in connection with his investigative journalism.

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28 Apr

Turkey: ECPMF and partner organisations condemn escalating use of “disinformation law” against journalists and call for its repeal

The undersigned press freedom, freedom of expression, journalists’ and human rights organisations strongly condemn the intensifying use of Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code — widely known as the “disinformation law” — to arrest, detain, and prosecute journalists, and call on the government to repeal the provision immediately and release all journalists imprisoned under it.

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26 Mar

EU visa policies for Turkish journalists must support media freedom

A coalition of press freedom and human rights organisations urges the EU to streamline visa access for Turkish journalists, warning that delays, rejections and costly procedures undermine independent media, mobility and cross-border collaboration.

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10 Mar

Systemic Siege of Independent Journalism in Türkiye: Media Freedom Mission Report 2025

A coalition of eight international press freedom organisations, including ECPMF and OBCT as part of MFRR, conducted the seventh joint mission to Türkiye from 24-26 November 2025 in Ankara. The delegation met with stakeholders such as the Constitutional Court, RTÜK representatives, EU delegation, opposition MPs, and journalists' associations, but government requests went unanswered.

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26 Feb

Press freedom groups call for release of four ETHA journalists

Press freedom and freedom of expression organizations are calling for the immediate and unconditional release of journalists Pınar Gayıp, Nadiye Gürbüz and Elif Bayburt, who work for the Etkin News Agency (ETHA), condemning their arrests in the strongest terms.

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20 Feb

Turkey: Media freedom, freedom of expression and human rights groups urge authorities to release and drop charges against journalist Alican Uludağ

The undersigned media freedom, freedom of expression and human rights organisations strongly condemn the arrest of Deutsche Welle (DW) correspondent Alican Uludağ and call on the Turkish authorities to drop all charges against him and cease the judicial harassment of journalists reporting on matters of public interest.

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26 Nov

Turkey: 7th International press freedom mission concludes

Ankara, November 26, 2025 – A mission delegation composed of eight international press freedom, free expression and human rights organisations has concluded a joint press freedom mission to Türkiye. The delegation met with journalists, civil society, political party representatives, MPs, the judicial branch, regulatory bodies, and foreign diplomatic missions to discuss Türkiye's rapidly deteriorating media freedom environment.

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13 Nov

EU Enlargement Package: Assessments must now translate into meaningful media freedom action

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today welcomes the publication of the 2025 EU Enlargement Package and highlights key media freedom developments and concerns that should shape negotiations with candidate countries moving forward.

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