Five-day of Blackout imposed on Halk TV

Halk TV has been served with the 5-day screen blackout penalty given by the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK). Halk TV’s legal attempts to stop the punishment were inconclusive. The blackout will be enforced from midnight on 28th September to midnight on 3rd October 2020.

In their statement regarding the decision Halk TV said their application to stop the RTÜK’s decision was refused and they were served for the legal notice. “If the court find RTÜK unjust and overrides the 5-day blackout penalty, an irreparable result will occur. Furthermore, while this case continues, if RTÜK imposes another penalty under the same law then Halk TV will be closed completely. We want to bring the legal strangeness here to the attention of the lawyers and lawmakers.

RTÜK based it’s 5-day blackout on some of the statements made by Ayşenur Arslan’s ‘Medya Mahallesi’ programme on 16th June 2020. According to the statement given by Halk TV, Ayşenur Arslan is accused of “offending and undermining members of The Turkish Armed Forces” and RTÜK is to serve punishment under the article that states “Publication cannot act contrary to the existence and independence of the Republic of Turkey, the State’s indivisible integrity with its nation and people, the principles and reforms of Atatürk.” Halk TV had said “Words are finished, so is the law…”

Halk TV’s statement concluded that “Those politicians and millions of people from whom the right to receive news have been seized are perhaps prepared for a Halk TV without a voice and a screen that is completely blackened.”

SUPPORT FROM TELE 1

TELE 1 [another tv station], which was blacked out by RTÜK for 5 days in early September, announced that it would darken their screens for a minute at 9pm every day for the duration of the 5-day blackout imposed on Halk TV.

ONLINE ACCESS BAN IMPOSED ON YENİ YAŞAM NEWSPAPER

On the other hand, access to the Yeni Yaşam Newspaper’s website was blocked with the decision of the Hatay Magistrates Court.

Yeni Yaşam Newspaper states that “In these days when the pressure against the free press and the opposition are increasing, an access ban has been imposed on our newspaper’s website on ‘yeniyasamgazetesi1.com’. The reason Hatay Magistrates Court has given for the imposed ban on access to the newspaper’s website on 25/9/2020 “is based on protective measures of Information Technologies and Communication Authority. However, we are yet to receive information regarding the article that led to this ban. Online access to our newspaper can be reached from http://yeniyasamgazetesi2.com”. (EVRENSEL DAILY)