Objection to Reporter Gök’s Arrest Rejected

First the Siirt prosecution had prolonged the time of detention for Gök, who had been taken into custody with others (Bilal Aşkara, Resul Yıldız, Cihan Obuz, Teyfik Yılmaz, Ahmet Tiryaki, Ziyarettin Akın and Yakup Akça), saying that there was a trial open against Gök in Izmir and that his statement was incomplete.

On 25 March, he was taken to the Siirt Criminal Court of Peace which ordered his arrest for spreading PKK propaganda. He was taken to the Siirt E-Type prison.

Different accusations made

Another reporter from DİHA who was at the Newroz celebrations in Siirt, Celal Kalpak, has told bianet what he witnessed:

“When Gök was taken into custody, we were at the exit of the celebration area. The police harrassed him and then took him into custody. When I objected, a police chief said, “your friend has thrown stones at the police.” I told him that that was not credible, that Gök was just covering the event as a reporter, and that the detention was arbitrary.

Kalpak said that there were different accusations levelled at Gök all the time. “First they said that he had thrown stones at the police. When that was not credible, they said that he had manipulated the crowd; finally, they said that he was taken into custody for terrorist propaganda because he had written down the slogans shouted and written down on placards and because he had been linked to Roj TV.”

Lawyer Servet Özen has argued that Gök suffered torture and mistreatment when being taken into custody. The medical report on Gök, written at the Siirt State Hospital, is currently with the prosecution. As soon as the lawyer is able to examine them, he has announced, he will file a criminal complaint against those responsible.

Condemnation of arrests

On 26 March, DİHA broadcasting editor Devrim Göktaş called for the release of Gök and four other reporters from the agency under arrest. He called on press organisations and the public to protest against “these illegal and unfair practices.”

At a press conference organised by the Society of Journalists in the Southeast (GGC), Democratic Society Party (DTP) group vice chair Selahattin Demirtaş held the Siirt governor and police department responsible for Gök’s arrest.

The DİHA agency had previously called for the release of its reporters Ali Buluş, Mehmet Karaaslan, Faysal Tunç and Behdin Tunç, who are all in prison for alleged connections to the PKK. It is not clear yet whether the arrests are related purely to journalistic activities. (EÖ/AG)