 |
Danish court refuses to close down PKK-linked TV station
But in a nod to Turkish accusations, the City Court of Copenhagen fined Roj TV 400,000 euros because it was financed by the PKK and disseminates PKK propaganda, the Anatolia news agency reported.
After countless complaints and petitions from the Turkish government over a number of years, in August 2010 Denmark's public prosecution opened a court case against Roj TV, which Turkey says is a mouthpiece for the PKK, charging it with helping to promote the terrorist group. The PKK is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the US and the European Union. Roj TV has a Danish broadcasting license, but has no studios in Denmark.
Prosecutors Anders Riisager and Jakob Buch-Jepsen, who delivered their closing statements during the 28th hearing of the trial on Dec. 7, said the TV station is the voice of the terrorist PKK and requested a Danish court ban the channel from broadcasting. They submitted evidence of orders from PKK executives to Roj TV and photographs of Roj TV employees taken in PKK bases in the Kandil Mountains of northern Iraq. Buch-Jepsen also said during the hearing that the evidence they put forward clearly proves that Roj TV is completely under the control of the PKK, both administratively and financially.
Turkey's ambassador to Denmark welcomed the verdict but said it was now up to the country's broadcasting board to ban it. Roj TV's attorney said he would advise his client to appeal the fine.
The court said between February 2008 and September 2010 the TV channel had “one-sidedly and uncritically disseminated messages, including incitement to revolt and to join the organization.” The PKK, which has fought an armed struggle for nearly 30 years, rejects the “terrorist” label and says it is fighting for Kurdish rights and independence.
The decision sparked celebrations among scores of flag-waving Kurds outside the Copenhagen courthouse and sharp protests from Turkey, which says Roj TV is a mouthpiece for the PKK and has urged Denmark to shut it down. In Turkey, Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek questioned whether Roj TV was broadcasting within the limits of freedom of expression. “It is supporting the terrorist organization, it is encouraging the terrorist organization,” he said.
Prosecutor Anders Riisager said he would have to study the 175-page verdict before deciding whether to appeal.
Some 300 pro-Kurdish demonstrators who had gathered in a square near the court started chanting in celebration after the verdict was announced. Roj TV manager İmdat Yılmaz told The Associated Press he was satisfied with the ruling. “We got a huge fine but the most important [thing] is that we continue broadcasting,” Yılmaz said.
Roj TV is popular among many of Turkey's estimated 14 million Kurds, but has angered Ankara for broadcasting statements by PKK leaders. Egemen Bağış, Turkey's EU Affairs minister, harshly criticized the Danish court's decision, calling it a “decision that serves terror and the terrorist organization.” He also termed the decision “irresponsible” and said it encouraged the terrorist organization and enabled a racist mentality.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry partially hailed the decision and said it is important that the decision unveiled links between the terrorist organization and a PKK-funded media organization. A Foreign Ministry statement released on Tuesday added that this verdict will set a precedent on the international stage in fighting terrorism.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu told reporters on Tuesday that it is significant that the Danish court revealed links between the PKK and the PKK-linked TV station, adding that the fine is a clear indication that the court accepts the media organization is disseminating propaganda for a terrorist organization.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BÜLENT KENEŞ |  |
||
| What befell Niyazi-i Misri in the past is happening to Fethullah Gülen now | |||
| EKREM DUMANLI |  |
||
| When a call for fairness and reason finds acceptance | |||
| ŞAHİN ALPAY |  |
||
| Uludere, test case for democracy in Turkey | |||
| EMRE USLU |  |
||
| Are the Kurds mentally divorced from Turkey? | |||
| GÖKHAN BACIK |  |
||
| Erdoğan, Gül and Davutoğlu: the inner bargain on Turkish foreign policy | |||
| MARKAR ESAYAN |  |
||
| Taking lessons from previous experiences with the military | |||
| YAVUZ BAYDAR |  |
||
| Qualm | |||
| ÖMER TAŞPINAR |  |
||
| A new phase in Syria? | |||
| İHSAN DAĞI |  |
||
| Turkish foreign policy: Time for a re-evaluation | |||
| SEYFETTİN GÜRSEL |  |
||
| Poor-friendly economic growth and the AK Party | |||
| CHARLOTTE MCPHERSON |  |
||
| Missing women, missing opportunities | |||
| BERK ÇEKTİR |  |
||
| Changes to incentives for investment in Turkey | |||
| MERVE BÜŞRA ÖZTÜRK |  |
||
| The 1960 coup: a final test for democracy | |||
| AMANDA PAUL |  |
||
| Ukraine: a lost country | |||
| MÜMTAZER TÜRKÖNE |  |
||
| The 52nd anniversary of May 27 | |||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
