Turkish journalists arrested over reports of the earthquake

Mir Ali Kocher says he was traumatized by covering up the aftermath of the earthquake. Photo: Instagram/Mir Ali Kosar

By Grigor Atanesian and Nihan Kali for the BBC

Freelance journalist Mir Ali Koçer was 200 miles from the epicenter when Turkey was hit by a deadly earthquake on February 6. Grab your camera and microphone, and head to the damaged area to meet the survivors.

He shared stories of survivors and rescue workers on Twitter and is now under investigation on suspicion of spreading “false news” and could face up to three years in prison.

He is one of at least four journalists being investigated for covering or commenting on the earthquake.

Press freedom groups say scores of others have been arrested, harassed or prevented from writing.

At least 50,000 people died when earthquakes hit Turkey and Syria.

The Turkish authorities did not comment on the arrests.

A man stands in front of front buildings in Antakya, southern Turkey on February 20, 2023. The buildings were destroyed in the deadly magnitude 7.8 and 7.5 earthquakes on February 6. Photo: AFP

I couldn’t hold back my tears

On the night of the earthquake, Kocher — who is Kurdish and contributes to pro-opposition news sites such as Bayanit and Dovar — was smoking on his balcony in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, when suddenly his two dogs began barking.

He later recalled how they barked just like that in 2020, seconds before a smaller earthquake hit eastern Turkey.

“I felt like I was shaking. I felt the house shaking, I felt the TV shaking,” Kucher says. He hid under the dinner table with the dogs and then rushed outside.

Koçer left Diyarbakir and headed to Gaziantep. He was shocked by the scenes of destruction and the victims who suffered from freezing temperatures in the towns near the epicenter.

At least 3,000 earthquake victims died in Gaziantep.

“When I grabbed the mic, behind the camera or in front of the camera, I couldn’t hold back my tears,” Kocher recalled.

President Erdogan promised that he would rebuild the cities. Photo: AFP

“agitators”

Kocher was touched by the influx of volunteers and rescue teams coming from western Turkey, and shared their stories on Twitter. Some of the survivors told him they had not received any help for days. Similar complaints were cited across pro-opposition media.

During his visit to the earthquake-affected areas, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the people that he would rebuild their cities. But he also warned that those who spread “false news” and “cause social chaos” will be prosecuted, calling them “provocateurs”.

Kocher says that while he was reporting from the quake-hit area, the Diyarbakir police left a note in his apartment, asking him to visit the police station and give a statement.

At the station, he is told that he is under investigation under the recently enacted Misrepresentation Act. He said the police questioned him about his report from the epicenter and accused him of spreading false information.

The new Turkish law was adopted in October. It criminalized the public dissemination of disinformation and gave the state broader powers to control news websites and social media.

The Venice Commission, a legal watchdog for the Council of Europe, said the law would interfere with freedom of expression.

Opposition parties call it the “censorship law”.

People carry carpets as they walk past collapsed buildings in the Bostan area of ​​Kahramanmaras. Photo: Ozan Kos/AFP

“They don’t like criticism.”

Kocher insists he was meticulous in his work and interviewed all parties, from survivors to police, gendarmerie and rescue workers. “I did not share information without careful research and analysis,” he says.

Reporters Without Borders called the investigation against Cougar “ridiculous” and urged the authorities to drop it.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, an advocacy group, at least three other journalists face criminal charges.

Merdan Yanardağ and Enver Aysever are prominent political commentators based in Istanbul with large followings on social media. Both criticized the government’s rescue efforts.

Both are under investigation along with Mehmet Jalis, who, like Kocher, is based in Diyarbakir. He was arrested on suspicion of “inciting hatred” for interviewing a volunteer who criticized government rescue efforts and later released, according to Reporters Without Borders.

The number of other journalists under investigation is not clear. On Tuesday, police said they had arrested 134 people for “provocative websites” and arrested 25 of them, but their identities were not revealed.

Some of the detainees may have been spreading lies, including the fact that Afghan immigrants were digging through destroyed neighborhoods.

But critics say the crackdown has gone beyond those spreading harmful disinformation.

“The government is trying to block information from the earthquake zone,” says Internet rights expert Yaman Akdeniz, who teaches at Bilgi University in Istanbul.

The arrests came after the Turkish presidency’s communications director warned of “deadly disinformation” endangering rescue efforts. The directorate also launched a smartphone app called the “Misinformation Reporting Service” to encourage people to report manipulative posts about the earthquake.

“At any time [Turkish] Officials and the government are being criticized, they don’t like it, says Arzu Gibula, a journalist in Istanbul who covers authoritarianism and digital censorship.

“But this time they may be more forthright.”

The BBC contacted Turkey’s Presidential Directorate of Communications asking about the journalists being investigated and calls for advocacy groups to drop the investigations, but received no response.

– BBC

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