Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
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REVUE DE PRESSE-PRESS REVIEW-BERHEVOKA ÇAPÊ-RNISTA<br />
STAMPA-DENTRO DE LA PRENSA-BASIN ÖZET;<br />
Turkey has no free press,<br />
says Freedom House<br />
According to last year's survey, the<br />
Turkish press was 'partly free'<br />
Turkish Daily News worst possible score. .<br />
WASHINGTON - A Freedom In terms of repressive actions<br />
House survey of the press around (killings of journalists, self-centhe<br />
world placed Turkey with the sorship, harassment, expulsion,<br />
category of countries with no violence against journalists or<br />
free press. Last year's survey facilities, <strong>et</strong>c.), Turkish broadclassified<br />
Turkish press as "part- casting was rated Il and Turkish<br />
ly free."<br />
press a full 20, where 20 was the<br />
The <strong>de</strong>tailed report "The worst possible scare.<br />
Press: Pressed and Oppressed," Turkey's total score of 73, out<br />
writfen by Leonard R. Sussman,of a worst-possible of 100 put in<br />
said Turkey fell from "partly the "not free" category, which<br />
free" to "not free" along with comprised those countries with a<br />
nine other countries: Albania, total score of 61 or worse.<br />
Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Total "press freedom" scores<br />
Malaysia, Nigeria, Sing~pore, of some other countries are as<br />
TuniSia, Yemen and Zambia. follows (the lower the score,<br />
Laws and regulations th~t more freedom of press):<br />
influence media content ID Argentina 29; Armenia 57;<br />
Turkey received a score of 7 in Australia 7; Azerbaijan 69;<br />
broadcasting, and 9 in print, on a Belgium 7; Bolivia 17; Bulgaria<br />
scale of 0-10, 10 being the most 39; Burkina Faso 37; Burma 99;<br />
repressive. Burundi 88; Canada 18; Chad<br />
. In terms of political pressures 72; China 83; Croatia 56; Cuba<br />
and controls over the media con- 90; Cyprus 24; Denmark 9;<br />
tent, Turkish broadcasting got an Egypt 81; Greece 26; Guyana 28;<br />
8, and print media.got 7. The Haiti 51; Iraq 100; Iran 83;<br />
worst possible score IS 10. Kuwait 70; Malawi 43;<br />
Economic influences over Madagascar 44; Libya 85;<br />
media content was evaluated at 4 Zimbabwe 59; United States 12;<br />
for Turkish broadcastingand 7 Uganda 38; Norway 8;<br />
for print media, with 10 the Turkmenistan 84.<br />
Court adjourns trial of<br />
Kemal for.two months<br />
Turkish Daily News<br />
1STANBUL- The'. State<br />
Security Court on. F~iday<br />
adjourned to July 7 the tn~l of<br />
Turkey's best-knowp wnter,<br />
Yasar Kemal, charged with advo- ,<br />
cating separatism and fannin&<br />
public ~nrest w,ithan article p~blished<br />
ID the German magazIDe<br />
Der Spiegel last year.<br />
Responding to charges, Kemal<br />
too the court that he was against<br />
racism and had upheld unity contrary<br />
to charges of separatism.<br />
Score~. of local and foreign<br />
reporters and newsmen.with .television<br />
cameras Jostled with on~<br />
another insi<strong>de</strong> the tiny, packed<br />
courtroom to film the bùrly<br />
author, often blocking the view of<br />
the judges ~d ~efense .attorneys.<br />
More foreign Journalists were<br />
present than Turks to observe the<br />
trial. "I am not a racist. I have<br />
never been a Kurdish or a gypsy<br />
nationalist. I arn a socialist,' the<br />
69-year-old Kemal <strong>de</strong>clared.<br />
"For the past 50 years, as a<br />
writer, I fiave fought against<br />
racism. I have always sou~ht to<br />
be a unifier through mywntings,<br />
not a separatist."<br />
SATIJRDAY. MAY 6.1995<br />
Turkish Daily News<br />
The barrel-chested-author as~erted he was on trial not<br />
because of his Der Spiegel article, byt due to mistranslations<br />
published by the newspapers HUrriy<strong>et</strong> and Milliy<strong>et</strong>.<br />
"The prosecutor did not build his case against my<br />
words, but on"the so-called summary reporting by<br />
Milliy<strong>et</strong> and HUrriy<strong>et</strong>, based on their so-called translations<br />
from German," Kemal said. "Sentences are takerr<br />
out of context. Passages have been removed by tweezers<br />
and changed... It would not be a lie to say this is not mr.<br />
writing. This is Hürriy<strong>et</strong>'s and Milliy<strong>et</strong>'s writing, •<br />
asserted the tall, six-foot writer.<br />
"A writer stands as a compl<strong>et</strong>e whole. A text is also a<br />
compl<strong>et</strong>e whole. If we can attribute offenses to a writer<br />
on the basis of pieces of sentences plucked and distorted<br />
out of a writing, then there is no writer in Turkey who<br />
will not be found guilty even by the most conscientious<br />
judge," said he. He accused the prosecutor of frivolity for<br />
bringing totally unfoun<strong>de</strong>d charges. "He would have at<br />
least the German version translated by a neutral p,arty, or<br />
he would have asked me for the Turkish version, ' Kemal<br />
said to the judges.<br />
If found guilty, Kemal could face two to five years in<br />
prison. Imprisoned many times for his political views,<br />
Kemal is best known for his novels <strong>de</strong>picting rural life in<br />
the southern region of Çukurova. He gained international<br />
attention in 1957 with the publication of his novel<br />
Memed, My Hawk. He has been nominated for the<br />
Nobel Prize in Literature several times, and the publicity<br />
surrounding his indictment is thought to aid his chances<br />
of winning the prestigious award. Kemal also repeated<br />
his appeal to the government to end Turkey's war with<br />
rebel Kurds in the southeast. He said more than ,three<br />
million people had been displaced by the 11- year carnp'ajÂ~against<br />
the separatist Kurdistan Workers Party<br />
(Pu). Nearly 15,000 people have been killed in Turkey<br />
since the PKK launched a bloody terrorist insurgency in<br />
the southeast in 1984.<br />
"We are obliged to end this dirty and dirtying war," he<br />
said. "First, I arn calling mothers who lost their sons in<br />
the war in the east. This war bums your hearts more than.<br />
anyone else' s. I arn calling all'Jou also esteemed judges,'<br />
to join those who want to en. this war. This country<br />
belongs to us all and <strong>de</strong>serves to live much longer in the<br />
history of mankind." Kemal, dressed in a dark suit,<br />
appeared calm and confi<strong>de</strong>nt .the charges against him<br />
would be dropped.<br />
SlI)lling and relaxed, he joked with reporters before<br />
entenng the courtroom. .<br />
"Presi<strong>de</strong>nt Süleyman Demirel has never learned any<br />
lessons from my books. How do I know? Eve!}' time I<br />
see him, he says he has read all of my works,' Kemal<br />
said to the assemble journalists, chuckling.<br />
But he càlled for sweeping changes in the constitution<br />
and accused former PreSI<strong>de</strong>nt Kenan Evren of dictatorial<br />
<strong>de</strong>si2Ilsfor having penned it. '<br />
"lte (Evren) represents the blackest page in Turkey's<br />
history," Kemal said. .<br />
Evren, the lea<strong>de</strong>r of the 1980 military coup, served as<br />
presi<strong>de</strong>nt ofTurkey from 1982-1989. Wi<strong>de</strong>spread human<br />
rights violations were reported and thousands of writers,<br />
intellectuals and workers were imprisoned during the<br />
1980- 1983 military regime led by Evren and his fellow<br />
generals. Opponents bf the 1980 constitution claim it<br />
restricts political and civilliberties.<br />
43