Journalist Türker Alkan of the "Radikal" newspaper used to receive death threats before the 28 February 1997, when the National Security Council forced the then Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan to resign (The 28 February is often described as a "postmodern coup").

The death threats stopped with the "coup". Now, however, Alkan is being threatened again.

Threats by alled police officer 

In an article, Alkan said, "After 22 July [the general elections], there have been new angry and threatening messages. In a recent message the author claimed to be a police officer and said that I was a "traitor" and that he would "shot at my head twice".

He added, "Who knows, is he really a policeman? But even if he is not, what does the fact that someone with such a mentality has identified themselves with the police role tell us?"

Danger from social pressure 

Alkan referred to French sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville's saying, "The greatest threat to democracy is the one that comes from social pressure", saying, "it is impossible not to worry whether we are facing such a danger now."

The article continued:

"...But seeing democracy only as a constitutional and institutional order creates problems in the long run. Democracy is also a phenomenon related to socially dominant values, behavioural moulds and culture. Saying that, one should not divide people into "religious, laicist, right-wing, left-wing" or judge people as being part of a democratic or an authoritarian camp. In the past we have seen that the left-wing and laicist, as well as the religious and authoritarian, can be authoritarian to the same degree. Now it is the AKP's turn to show its practices. It seems to me that, given the opportunity..."

BIA: Do not leave crimes towards journalists unpunished

The BIA Media Monitoring Desk had reported 17 incidents of attacks and 6 cases of threats towards journalists in its second quarterly Media Monitoring Report published on 6 July.

BIA had demanded that in order to prevent a culture of impunity, those responsible for these crimes needed to be punished as a matter of urgency. (EÖ/AG)