The Committee to Protect Journalists has called on the Turkish government to investigate an attack on political commentator Emre Erciş and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Yesterday afternoon Erciş was shot in the foot and leg by an unidentified assailant while walking in İstanbul’s Fatih district with his daughter, according to news reports, which said his daughter was not injured in the attack.
“Turkish authorities must swiftly investigate the shooting of journalist Emre Erciş, determine if it was to his reporting, and bring all those involved swiftly to justice,” said CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna. “Journalists on all sides of the political spectrum are at risk of assault in Turkey, and impunity in such cases only encourages the next potential assailant.”
Physical attacks on journalists in Turkey are rarely prosecuted, according to CPJ reporting.
The “Media Monitoring Report” published by the Turkish Journalists’ Association (TGC) said 15 journalists in Turkey faced attacks and violence during the April-June period.
According to the report a total of 179 journalists appeared in court in 81 separate cases during the second quarter of the year, while 16 journalists were detained.
One out of every four journalists was subjected to physical violence, and half of them received threats in 2020, a report released in February by the TGC showed.
One in every five journalists faced trial last year, while the trial of one out of every six was still ongoing, the report said.
Source:Stockholm Center for Freedom (SCF)
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