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Expulsion of Frederike Geerdink, who reports for her country’s media and the
UK’s Independent, follows exit of two UK-based Vice News
journalists
Turkey deported a Dutch freelance journalist on Wednesday after she was detained on
suspicion of aiding Kurdish militants while reporting in the country’s
strife-hit south-east, her lawyer has said.
Frederike Geerdink, who reports for Dutch radio and newspapers and Britain’s Independent, was detained on Saturday as she covered a group of 32 activists protesting against renewed violence between security forces and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), lawyer Davut Uzunkopru told Reuters.
She was released from custody pending trial. The provincial governor in Hakkari ordered her expulsion under a rule that says foreigners suspected of wrongdoing can be deported, Uzunkopru said, adding she was taken to the airport in the eastern city of Van and would transit through Istanbul to be sent overseas.
“A group of activists acting as human shields entered a security zone and were detained as they were leaving. Geerdink was detained for covering this event,” Uzunkopru said. “We will appeal the decision to deport her.”
Government officials had previously said Geerdink was held for her own safety after she and the activists were discovered inside the zone in Hakkari, scene of heavy fighting.
No one was immediately available at the governor’s office to comment on her case. The state-run Anadolu agency reported she was to be deported, citing a security source.
It was the second time that Geerdink, who was based in Diyarbakir, had been taken into custody in Turkey. She was briefly detained in January and was acquitted of charges of disseminating “terrorist propaganda” in April.
Concerns over a clampdown on the media during a period of political violence has stirred criticism from rights groups such as Freedom House and Amnesty International.
“It’s clear the deportation is an attempt to make sure Frederike is not responsible for critical reporting. But it’s also part of a larger pattern of intimidation of journalists,” said Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s Turkey researcher.
Earlier this month, two British journalists with Vice News were arrested on terror charges while reporting in Diyarbakir, the southeast’s biggest city. They were then released but their Iraqi colleague, Mohammed Ismael Rasool, remains in prison pending court proceedings.
Frederike Geerdink, who reports for Dutch radio and newspapers and Britain’s Independent, was detained on Saturday as she covered a group of 32 activists protesting against renewed violence between security forces and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), lawyer Davut Uzunkopru told Reuters.
She was released from custody pending trial. The provincial governor in Hakkari ordered her expulsion under a rule that says foreigners suspected of wrongdoing can be deported, Uzunkopru said, adding she was taken to the airport in the eastern city of Van and would transit through Istanbul to be sent overseas.
“A group of activists acting as human shields entered a security zone and were detained as they were leaving. Geerdink was detained for covering this event,” Uzunkopru said. “We will appeal the decision to deport her.”
Government officials had previously said Geerdink was held for her own safety after she and the activists were discovered inside the zone in Hakkari, scene of heavy fighting.
No one was immediately available at the governor’s office to comment on her case. The state-run Anadolu agency reported she was to be deported, citing a security source.
It was the second time that Geerdink, who was based in Diyarbakir, had been taken into custody in Turkey. She was briefly detained in January and was acquitted of charges of disseminating “terrorist propaganda” in April.
Concerns over a clampdown on the media during a period of political violence has stirred criticism from rights groups such as Freedom House and Amnesty International.
“It’s clear the deportation is an attempt to make sure Frederike is not responsible for critical reporting. But it’s also part of a larger pattern of intimidation of journalists,” said Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s Turkey researcher.
Earlier this month, two British journalists with Vice News were arrested on terror charges while reporting in Diyarbakir, the southeast’s biggest city. They were then released but their Iraqi colleague, Mohammed Ismael Rasool, remains in prison pending court proceedings.
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