BÜLENT ARINÇ

Vice Prime Minister Bülent Arınç accepted that there are arrested journalists due to their journalistic activities. Arınç spoke at the closing session of the Turkey-Africa Media Forum in Ankara and answered a question about the arrested journalists as follows:

"There are only a few journalists that are under arrest due to their journalistic activities in Turkey, but if you say there are hundreds of them, this means you are crazy."

"Should anyone have the privilege to commit crimes because he is journalist ?"

''There are no rapists''

"There are 92 journalists under arrest" answered Minister of EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bağış to a parliamentary question.

Bağış also clarified his previous statements:

"When I said 'there are rape convict journalists', I meant 'there are journalists charged with simple offences.' "

96 journalists in jail

100 journalists and 35 newspaper distributors were in jail at the end of March as BİA Media Monitoring First Quarter Report 2012 revealed.

100 journalists and 35 newspaper distributors are labeled as "journalists trying to create a media environment for the illegal organizations" by  "following up certain news and incidents", "writing a book", "government-critical journalism" or "working for a Kurdish media outlet" claims.

According to the report, only four journalists are facing trial directly on the grounds of the news, articles, comments and books they wrote: Chief editors of Azadiya Welat newspaper Vedat Kurşun, Ruken Ergün and Ozan Kılınç, Aram Publishing owner and Hawar newspaper official Bedri Adanır.

96 journalists were in jail on May 3, World Press Freedom Day. (AS)