Turkish authorities on Monday placed on house arrest three independent journalists who were detained after interviewing citizens over Turkey’s ailing economy, Diken news site reported.
Hasan Köksoy, who runs the “Kendine Muhabir’’ account on YouTube, as well as Arif Kocabıyık and Turan Kural of the platform’s İlave TV have been put on house arrest after being released following a pre-dawn raid on Sunday leading to their detention, Diken said.
The YouTubers, based out of Turkey’s southern Antalya province who had been interviewing locals about the country’s financial woes, have also been banned from leaving the country, according to the outlet.
The lira has lost around 40 percent of its value since the beginning of the year and tumbled 39 percent since a September rate cut, to record-breaking lows against the U.S. dollar and euro. Inflation in the country is around 21 percent, according to official data.
The arrests were ordered after Mücahit Birinci, a lawmaker in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) filed a complaint, Gerçek Gündem news site reported.
Erdoğan over the weekend warned that social media was “the main threat to democracy,” and his government has vowed to crack down harder on what it calls “disinformation’’ on the internet.
New legislation would make the dissemination of “disinformation” and “fake news” criminal offences punishable by up to five years in prison, according to Turkish media reports.
Ahval