Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç has denied that any journalists in Turkey have been jailed for their reporting, despite widespread criticism that the government has escalated its crackdown on independent media, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Monday.
Tunç defended Turkey’s press freedom record at a gathering with representatives of media organizations in Ankara. He claimed that the country had made significant progress in the past 23 years under the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
“There are no journalists imprisoned in Turkey for engaging in journalism,” Tunç said.
The minister’s remarks come in the face of ongoing criticism from press organizations, which say that Turkey remains one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists.
The Turkish government has tightened its control over the media in recent months as part of a broader crackdown on opposition groups, which has resulted in the arrest of journalists, activists and politicians as the government intensifies its grip on public discourse.
X has also blocked dozens of accounts belonging to Turkish journalists, activists and media organizations, including those operated by journalists living in exile, over the past few months. Some of these accounts had hundreds of thousands of followers.
Press freedom in Turkey has been in decline for years, with increasing reports of censorship, arrests and legal pressure on journalists. Human rights groups warn that these latest restrictions represent a significant threat to the free press and prevent people from accessing news from independent outlets.
Rights groups routinely accuse Turkey of undermining media freedom by arresting journalists and shutting down critical media outlets, particularly after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan survived a failed coup in July 2016.
Turkey is one of the world’s biggest jailers of professional journalists and was ranked 158th among 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) 2024 World Press Freedom Index.