North criminalises journalists naming high-profile crime suspects

Journalists’ reporting of the names of high-profile individuals who appear in court accused of crimes was on Monday criminalised in the north, after a bill banning the act was passed through the Turkish Cypriot legislature with the votes of members of the three ruling coalition parties, the UBP, the DP, and the YDP.

As such, the use of the names of any suspects or the taking of photographs of suspects in and around courtrooms is also now a crime.

Those who do take and publish photographs of suspects in and around courtrooms, or who publish the names of defendants, in the media or on social media, will now be subject to sentences of up to three months in prison or a fine amounting to four times the north’s monthly minimum wage.

At present, the north’s monthly minimum wage is 60,618TL (€1,147), with the fine as such set, for now, at 243,272TL (€4,604).

Those who disseminate the image though means other than the media or social media will also be subject to sentences of up to three months in prison or a fine amounting to twice the north’s monthly minimum wage.

The plans were defended in the legislature by UBP representative Alisan San, who said that “the perception of individuals as guilty on social media, in the press, or in society before the completion of the judicial process has much more serious consequences, especially in smaller communities”.

However, opposition figures were less than convinced, with CTP representative Sami Ozuslu descriing the new law as “blatant censorship”.

“What kind of nonsense is it to ban the publication of names and photographs of public figures during this process? This is blatant censorship, and it is very dangerous,” he said.

He argued that while it may be fair for an ordinary member of the public to not have their name and photograph shared in the media when they are accused of a crime, “individuals with public power and financial resources should not be treated the same as ordinary members of the public”.

Later, he warned that the new law could have negative implications on the state of press freedom in the north, saying, “today, we boast that our journalists are not going to jail, but if this bill passes, the picture will change”.

“You are threatening them with prison. This will turn into an operation to silence journalists,” he said, before referencing a recent high-profile incident which occurred over the weekend on the other side of the Green Line and asking what the law would now require in the north.

“Suppose Sami Ozuslu beat the life out of a referee at a football match. Would that not be reported? Would you hide his name and his photograph and then lock up the person who wrote about it?”

The law’s passage comes after multiple high-profile figures in the north have appeared in court and been charged with crimes in recent months, including former ‘education minister’ Kemal Durust, former Famagusta police chief Baris Sel, ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel’s close personal associate Fatma Unal, Ustel’s now former undersecretary Huseyin Cahitoglu, the now former chief of the north’s tender commission Salih Cansec, the son of ruling coalition representative Hasan Tosunoglu, Ugur Tosunoglu, former chairman of the north’s higher education accreditation authority (Yodak) Turgay Avci, and board member Mehmet Hasguler, who is now the chief advisor of ruling coalition party the YDP.