Turkey plans further clampdown on independent media
Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AKP says it won't allow "fifth column" activity from independent media organizations.
Turkey’s announcement Wednesday that it will soon “regulate” foreign-funded media outlets and require them to submit a detailed report on their activities every six months has set off a fierce debate, with critics saying it’s a further attempt by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to eviscerate what remains of the free press.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his intentions clear in a news conference at the end of a two-day tour to the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, saying, “We will be taking action against the calumny terror. From October onward, work will be undertaken to this end in the parliament.”
Turkey is routinely listed as one of the worst offenders of press freedom, with dozens of journalists languishing in jail on thinly supported “terror charges.”
The announcement came amid a smear campaign against independent media outlets that receive financial support from the US-based Chrest Foundation, a private charity.
