This week, Fatih Altaylı joined the list of jailed journalists. A veteran of mainstream media, Altaylı had turned to his YouTube channel as the media landscape shifted. He was arrested over remarks made in his most recent broadcast. The charge: “threatening the president.” There's hardly any need to delve into the content itself—doesn’t a threat require force, weapons, or some kind of danger? What power or weapons could a journalist possibly wield to threaten a president? His only weapon is his words. And so, we’ve now witnessed a journalist being accused of criminal threat simply for speaking and writing. That’s why a large part of society sees Altaylı’s arrest as legally unfounded. In fact, many believe, “He was the harshest critic of the government and had the most-watched channel. That’s why he was arrested. The goal is to silence him.”
THE “HILTON” CELLBLOCK
Under the current government’s 23-year reign, Turkey has likely seen the highest number of journalist arrests in its century-old republican history. Back in the 1950-60s, during the one-party rule of the Democrat Party, mass arrests of journalists also occurred. They were imprisoned in the now-defunct Ankara Central Prison—known today as the Ulucanlar Museum. Among them was Metin Toker, editor-in-chief of Akis magazine and son-in-law of then-CHP Chair İsmet İnönü. Most journalists publishing critical news about the government were arrested. A special ward was designated for them. That’s why, half-jokingly, the journalists’ ward was dubbed the “Hilton cellblock.”
THE BIZARRE CASE OF THE “HIJACKING” JOURNALIST
In Turkey, journalists have long been arrested for what they write or say—in other words, for simply doing their jobs. Perhaps the only exception to this rule came on May 3, 1972, when a passenger plane departing Ankara was hijacked to Sofia in a protest over the impending executions of Deniz Gezmiş and his comrades. The attempt failed. At the time, intellectuals, writers, and journalists had also signed joint declarations opposing the executions. It was a time of military tutelage. In a move that now seems absurd, journalist Altan Öymen was detained not for a report, but on charges of being linked to the hijackers. In fact, Öymen had signed one of those declarations, which made him a target. The farce ended a short while later.
JOURNALISTS SHOULD BE JUDGED BY THEIR PEERS, NOT COURTS
In truth, journalist trials and arrests have long been a persistent, yet often overlooked, reality in Turkey. Take, for example, arrests of journalists working for media outlets affiliated with or close to Kurdish political movements; these have continued unabated. For sure, they received little to no support from mainstream media—often, their stories didn’t even make the news.
Undoubtedly, there is a need for criticism, self-criticism, and reflection within the media and among its editorial circles in Turkey’s recent history. Journalists should be held accountable not by courts, but by their peers and their audiences. But that can’t happen when they’re trapped in courthouse corridors or behind prison walls. Such scrutiny is only possible in an environment free from judicial repression.
EVERY MORTAL, EVERY JOURNALIST
Not every journalist seeks the Pulitzer Prize. But neither should they write in fear of being arrested the next morning. Arresting one journalist sends a chilling message to all—and worse, it breeds self-censorship. There’s a well-known saying in Islam: “Every soul shall taste death.” But in today’s Turkey, that sentiment risks being replaced by a grim new reality: “Everyone who criticizes or dissents shall be imprisoned.” That must not become the truth.
