Journalists weary of facing charges for Ergenekon coverage

Acar, who attended nearly 100 hearings held in a courthouse in İstanbul's Silivri district, said a new case was being launched against him for each and every news story he wrote about Ergenekon. Zaman is currently facing 185 court cases, the Star daily 150 and Yeni Şafak and Taraf are facing 100 court cases each regarding their reports on the Ergenekon probe. These attempts to carry out legal action against newspapers and journalists covering the Ergenekon case are usually based on Turkish Penal Code (TCK) Article 285, which criminalizes “violation of confidentiality,” and Article 288, which criminalizes “influencing the independent judiciary.” Hundreds of such cases have been filed by prosecutors against various press organizations.

Zaman's legal representative, Ali Odabaşı, has stated that many complaints are filed against journalists for procedural reasons, adding that when reaching a legal decision it should be considered whether the piece of information violates privacy or if it obstructs the investigation.

“Public benefit should be what's important. We are talking about a very big case that concerns the entire public. We have to share information we get with the public,” he said, adding that many journalists fear being prosecuted for what they write.

The Ergenekon trial, one of the most important in Turkey to date, has been going on for two years since the start of the investigation in 2007. Eighty percent of the charges filed against newspapers are based on Article 285, followed by charges filed based on Article 288. A smaller number of cases are based on the principle of the “confidentiality of preliminary investigations,” a crime under Article 19 of the Press Law.

   Engin Cinmen, a lawyer for the Taraf newspaper, complains that judges should pay attention to Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) while basing the cases on Article 285. Cinmen said: “They need to take into account the public's right to obtain information. For example, the court may issue a warrant to monitor telephone calls. If you publish this, the investigation will fail as this would be an obstruction of justice. But if a document is leaked from the security forces, then it's a journalist's duty to publish it.”

   Günay Erkan, a legal representative from the Doğan Group, has stated that reporters are demoralized by the number of legal investigations into Ergenekon stories. Noting that prosecutors scrutinize any story that contains the word “Ergenekon” simply because of the sensitivity of the issue, Erkan said: “There is an item in Article 19 of the Press Law that proposes a fine for the publication of the content of an investigation. But cases are opened not based on this item but based on Article 285 of the TCK, which proposes imprisonment to discourage reporters.”

 The Bugün daily's news manager, Güngör Ergün, reckoned that prosecutors needed to be more prudent with respect to the Ergenekon case because it's not like any ordinary case. “Reporters have a major duty in this case. There are prices to pay for doing this job and for informing the public. We're paying the price. But cases that are being filed against us are reaching limits that restrict freedom of the press. Indeed, the investigation must be carried out in confidentiality. But there are some issues that in order for the investigation to reach its goal there must be public opinion. I believe prosecutors need to be more prudent. They should not apply this method to every event or story.”

Yeni Şafak's legal representative, Elvan Akça, noted that the reason why there are so many complaints filed against stories related to Ergenekon was because prosecutors were applying the law word for word. “This obviously affects media organizations and their publication policies. It creates a disadvantage for writing and publishing stories,” she said.

How many cases filed against newspapers?

Hundreds of cases have been filed against newspapers and television stations since the Ergenekon investigation started in June 2007, and these cases are waiting for the judges' rulings. The Zaman daily, which has widely covered Ergenekon stories, has 185 ongoing cases, of which 95 percent were filed for violating confidentiality, and the remaining were filed for influencing the independent judiciary. This figure only includes the number of cases filed against editors-in-chief and excludes charges filed against reporters. In addition to the five cases being addressed at the Ankara and Van courts, all cases were opened by the Bakırköy 2nd Penal Court of First Instance.

 The Star daily, whose Ankara representative, Şamil Tayyar, has attracted attention for his stories on Ergenekon, has close to 150 cases filed against its editor-in-chief and reporters, of which 120 were filed based on “violation of confidentiality.” In September, an İstanbul court fined Tayyar and sentenced him to prison time for violating the right to privacy of Ergenekon suspect and journalist Güler Kömürcü. The court originally handed down a sentence of one-and-a-half years in jail, but the sentence was delayed and later decreased to one year, three months for good behavior during the trial. Tayyar will be under judicial supervision for five years and will be imprisoned if he commits a crime within that period. All cases concerning the Star daily are being handled by the Bakırköy 2nd Penal Court of First Instance.

Taraf, which has featured some of the most important documents during the Ergenekon investigation, is dealing with close to 100 cases filed for violating confidentiality, influencing the independence of the judiciary and violating the confidentiality of preliminary investigations.

 The number of cases filed against the Doğan Media Group is unclear. Although its coverage of Ergenekon was limited, charges have been filed against all newspapers and television stations owned by the group.  Yeni Şafak also has close to 100 cases filed against it.