Journalism Under Emergency Rule
The journalists in the provinces under emergency rule, has gone through many difficulties in the last 15 years.
Ferit Demir, a journalist of 12 years, points out that the evacuation and burning down of villages in the years of 1994 and 1995, were the most important incidents in Tunceli and its neighborhood.
"The journalists were not let into the villages. Since I lived and worked in Tunceli, I could at least talk to the people who witnessed the developments," says Demir.
"There were no journalists here till the year 2001"
Demir, who was the one and only journalist in Tunceli until last year, reported stories for the Cumhuriyet newspaper, Dogan news agency (DHA) and Reuters, for years.
Demir also worked for Kanal D, a private television channel during the years 1994-1996, before he started working for the Dogan news agency. He gives examples of the things he went through during 15-years of emergency rule:
* Once, a police station was raided late at night. I was live on the private Kanal D television talking about the incident. That night, many people who were originally from Tunceli but lived somewhere else, kept calling the governor's office because they were really worried.
* The next morning, Atil, Uzelgun, the governor of the time, called me into his office and yelled at me saying, "I couldn't sleep all night because of what you have done. If you do something like this again, I will resort to the emergency rule laws and send you to exile outside of Tunceli."
* I said to him, "I am a journalist, and you cannot take my rights away," but actually I knew that the emergency rule laws granted him the right to do that.
"You are always causing trouble"
* In 1994 and 1995, when the villages were evacuated and burnt down, the villagers, who had to leave their homes, could not take their donkeys, horses or dogs with them. The security forces killed the animals left in the villages, saying that they "were used in carrying necessities to the PKK," the Kurdistan Workers' Party. The dogs that left the villages and rushed to the towns were also killed with the excuse that they "disturbed the people."
* When I wrote about these in my stories that I sent to the Cumhuriyet newspaper and Reuters, especially England intensely criticized Turkey.On this incident, the same governor called me into his office once again and said, "You are always causing trouble. Next time, I will send you on exile." I reacted to him once again by saying; "You cannot send me on exile. I am a journalist and you cannot prevent me (from doing my job)."
He was detained, kidnapped by the PKK
The journalist, who worked amid intense clashes for years, went through many difficulties. Journalist Demir was kidnapped by the PKK for a week in 1993 and for 10 days in 1995.
As he worked in Tunceli and the surrounding region, Demir also had financial difficulties as well as difficulties in terms of safety.
"I did my job no matter what, taking huge risks. I could only pursue my job because of the deep passion I have for journalism," Demir told Bianet..
"My working conditions have improved since 1998, and the security forces have been treating journalists with more attention for the last two years."
Ban on publications under emergency rule
According to article 11 (e) of the emergency rule law no: 2935, the governor of a region under emergency rule can "ban or confiscate any book, newspaper, magazine, announcement etc." if he feels necessary.
Over 20 opposition magazines and newspapers have been banned from the region up to this day.
Emergency rule also allows governors to impose curfews or call in soldiers to suppress illegal demonstrations, and to ban rallies in Kurdish areas that were plagued by violence during a 15-year insurgency by Kurdish guerrillas and a crackdown by government troops.
From martial law to emergency rule
The region had been under martial law from August 15, 1984 up to July 19, 1987, as the Turkish army battled with the Kurdish rebels in the southeast.
After July 1987, the provinces of Diyarbakir, Bingol, Hakkari, Mardin and Siirt were brought under emergency rule.
Emergency Rule in Tunceli
The emergency rule was imposed with a decree on the law no: 285. With the same law, the provinces of Bingol, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hakkari, Mardin, Siirt, Tunceli and Van were brought under the emergency rule.
With the lifting of the emergency rule in the provinces of Hakkari and Tunceli on August 1, 2002, the rule will remain in force in just two provinces, Diyarbakir and Sirnak. The emergency rule in these two provinces is expected to be repealed in four months. (NK/EA/NM)