March, 04 2016, 11:00am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7413 5566,After hours: +44 7778 472 126,Email:,press@amnesty.org
Zaman Newspaper Taken Over as Turkish Government Steamrolls Press Freedom
Today's government takeover of Zaman newspaper is the latest deeply troubling episode of the Turkish authorities' ongoing onslaught on dissenting media, Amnesty International said today.
"By lashing out and seeking to rein in critical voices, President Erdogan's government is steamrolling over human rights," said Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International's Turkey expert.
"A free and independent media, together with the rule of law and independent judiciary, are the cornerstones of internationally guaranteed freedoms which are the right of everyone in Turkey."
TURKEY
Today's government takeover of Zaman newspaper is the latest deeply troubling episode of the Turkish authorities' ongoing onslaught on dissenting media, Amnesty International said today.
"By lashing out and seeking to rein in critical voices, President Erdogan's government is steamrolling over human rights," said Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International's Turkey expert.
"A free and independent media, together with the rule of law and independent judiciary, are the cornerstones of internationally guaranteed freedoms which are the right of everyone in Turkey."
Just last week, the TV channel IMCTV was taken off air, silencing the only national news channel reporting a counter view of the situation in south-eastern Turkey, where round-the-clock curfews were imposed as armed clashes devastated entire towns.
Last October, court-appointed administrators took over media outlets within the Koza Ipek group. President Erdogan has even refused to recognize a Constitutional Court ruling releasing the prominent Cumhuriyet journalists Can Dundar and Erdem Gul. The two had been had been imprisoned since November 2015, awaiting trial on charges of assisting a terrorist organization, espionage and revealing confidential documents.
Last week Amnesty International documented a disturbing pattern of attacks on freedom of the press in Turkey in its Annual Report on the State of World's Human Rights.
Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights for all. Our supporters are outraged by human rights abuses but inspired by hope for a better world - so we work to improve human rights through campaigning and international solidarity. We have more than 2.2 million members and subscribers in more than 150 countries and regions and we coordinate this support to act for justice on a wide range of issues.
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The Wall Street Journalreported Thursday that former Trump administration officials and other supporters of the ex-president "have in recent months discussed a range of proposals, from incremental policy changes to a long-shot assertion that the president himself should play a role in setting interest rates."
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Due to Trump attorney's concessions in Supreme Court oral argument, there's now a very clear path for DOJ's case to go forward.\n\nIt'd be a travesty for Justices to delay matters further.\n\nJustice Amy Coney Barrett got Trump attorney to concede core allegations are private acts.\u2b07\ufe0f— (@)
According to NBC:
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