A new report looks at how the Turkish and Russian government have been targeting journalists with an escalating number of court cases, using similar strategies.

The analysis, Gavels Against Pens: The judiciary’s assault on journalism in Russia and Turkey, was published by Germany’s Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom on June 22. It is presented with an opening quote from author Margaret Atwood, who told Wired magazine in May: “Nobody’s immune to anything. You have to understand the different kinds of pressures people feel like they’re under. What do totalitarian governments of any kind try to do immediately? They try to control communications networks. In a coup, they grab the radio and television. They try to shut down communications, and education, so that nothing is taught that isn’t copacetic with their own views.

“Those are two things totalitarian governments will try to do. A third is to control the judiciary, so the views of the judges and lawyers are the same as the regime. This is an old playbook.”

The report is the result of a collaboration between civil society organisations JAM e.V. (Association of Journalists and Lawyers for Freedom of Expression), MMDC (Mass Media Defense Center) and the Friedrich Naumann-Foundation for Freedom.

Among its highlights are comprehensive reports of Russian and Turkish cases that fall under the SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation) definition. 

The report says: “Accusations that involve crimes against the state are among the harshest that can be made. In contemporary Russia, they have become an instrument for punishing incompliant journalists. The lengthy detention times, secrecy, and gag orders on both the investigation and the court proceedings often involved in such accusations have proven very useful in repressing journalists.”

It adds: “Lawsuits over corruption investigations or financial news have increasingly become among the instruments used to crack down on journalists in Turkey.

“In dozens of such cases, journalists critical of the government face having to pay large amounts of compensation to lawsuit filers over insult, libel or slander allegations for their reports on monetary dealings of the family or close relatives of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan or members of business circles close to the president.”

Cited Turkish Justice Ministry statistics showed that 31,297 investigations into insults to the president were launched in 2020 alone.

The report examines a court case brought against Ismail Ari, a correspondent of Turkey’s BirGun newspaper.

Ari reported that the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) had spent Turkish lira (TRY) 7.6mn, or some 300,000 euros, on a tech festival organised by the T3 Foundation managed by Erdogan’s son-in-law Selcuk Bayraktar and his brother, Haluk Bayraktar.

“The Bayraktar brothers sued Ari and Cumhuriyet after the news report was published, seeking 250,000 lira (some 10,000 euros) in compensation. The court ruled that they should pay 200,000 lira, one of the highest compensation demands in the history of Turkey’s press trials,” the report notes.

Announcing the release of the report, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom highlighted how “Roman Zholud and Anna Romashchenko's chapters on Russia detail a carefully orchestrated ‘cleansing’ of the free and critical information space, spearheaded by [Vladimir] Putin's administration. This is particularly evident in the widespread censorship that accompanied Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, a move that resulted in the blocking or outright ban of numerous independent media outlets.

“Simultaneously, in Turkey, as narrated by Baris Altintas and Sibel Yukler, the Erdogan government's aggressive measures have caused the country to rank as the sixth-largest jailer of journalists globally.”

The Foundation concludes: “The judiciary's attack on journalism in both Russia and Turkey has significant implications for the freedom of press and the very concept of democracy. In Russia, the result can be seen every day during the war.

“In Turkey, the process is still ongoing. Despite the risks, journalists in these nations continue to strive for the truth, highlighting the dire need for international support to safeguard press freedom.”

The report was funded by Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom and was prepared for publication by the MLSA from Turkey, the Berlin-based Journalists and Lawyers for Free Speech Association, JAM and the Media Protection Group and MMDC from Russia.