In recent months, Turkey has continued to experience serious violations of freedom of expression. The government has mainly relied on the legal system to target anyone who expresses critical opinions, including journalists, teachers, academics and others. Online spaces for dissent have been under attack since Turkey’s failed coup in July 2016, and hundreds of people had been arrested over social media posts criticizing Turkish military interventions in northwestern Syria. In February, five journalists were sentenced to life, and in March 25 journalists were sentenced to jail for alleged links to the Gulen movement and were given prison terms of up to seven and a half years. Read more in the latest CIVICUS Monitor update here.
Source: CIVICUS Monitor