
05
Mar 2020
Lvl. 2
No state reply yet
Alert created on: 05 Mar 2020
n° 25/2020
Turkey
Harassment of Russian Agency Journalists in Turkey
Source of threatState
CategoryHarassment and intimidation of journalists
No state reply yet
On 1 March 2020, police detained three Turkish journalists, employees of Sputnik Türkiye in Ankara and the outlet’s chief Turkey editor in Istanbul, Mahir Boztepe. The arrests occurred after a group of protesters in Ankara attempted to break into the employees’ homes there; when the employees contacted the police to file a criminal complaint, police detained them and also ordered Boztepe’s detention in Istanbul.
The four Sputnik staffers were released the following day with no charges brought against them. When police arrested Boztepe, officers also searched Sputnik’s Istanbul office and copied journalists’ hard drives. According to the Turkish NGO Media and Law Studies Association, the police justified the detentions by citing article 302 of Turkish Criminal Code, a measure aimed at countering threats to the territorial integrity of the Turkish state. Turkish media reports suggest that these events followed the publication on the Sputnik agency’s website of an article entitled “The stolen province: why Turkey was given a corner of Syria by France 80 years ago”, about the southeastern Turkish city of Hatay.
The four Sputnik staffers were released the following day with no charges brought against them. When police arrested Boztepe, officers also searched Sputnik’s Istanbul office and copied journalists’ hard drives. According to the Turkish NGO Media and Law Studies Association, the police justified the detentions by citing article 302 of Turkish Criminal Code, a measure aimed at countering threats to the territorial integrity of the Turkish state. Turkish media reports suggest that these events followed the publication on the Sputnik agency’s website of an article entitled “The stolen province: why Turkey was given a corner of Syria by France 80 years ago”, about the southeastern Turkish city of Hatay.
Additional Information
- Statement from the Russian Journalists’ and Media Workers’ Union (JMWU): "Sputnik Türkiye: Russian Journalists' and Media Workers' Union condemns the use of journalists for political purposes"
- Sputnik news report: "Interpellation de journalistes de Sputnik Turquie, «des actes de pure intimidation»"
- Statement from the Russian Union of Journalists (RUJ): ""Россия сегодня" обращается в ООН, ОБСЕ и ЮНЕСКО в связи с ситуацией вокруг Sputnik Турция
- RT news report: "OSCE condemns harassment of Russian agency journalists in Turkey amid reported detention over ‘professional activity’"
Follow-ups

OSCE Media Freedom Representative condemns arrest of Sputnik journalists in Turkey, calls for their protection