AK Party accuses news group of ‘media terror'

11/09/2008| IslamWeb

Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) yesterday accused the country’s largest news organization of “media terror” in its coverage of corruption allegations, prompting debate about press freedom in the EU candidate.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused media magnate Aydin Dogan of using his newspapers and television channels to defame the government and the AK Party with reports of alleged corruption and gave him a one-week ultimatum to reveal his motives for the coverage.

"We openly express as the AK Party that we will not bow to the blackmail of any media organization. We condemn media terror,” AK Party Deputy Chairman Dengir Mir Mehmet Firat told reporters, adding Erdogan’s words were not aimed at curbing media freedom.

The European Union has been looking closely at questions such as press freedom and human rights in Turkey as part of entry negotiations. The government has introduced liberal reforms in many areas but still faces pressure from Brussels.

Turkey’s fast-growing media sector has become an increasingly bitter battleground between pro- and anti-government interests in recent years.

Shares in media group Dogan Yayin Holding and its parent conglomerate Dogan Holding fell sharply this week as investors worried the standoff could hurt the firms’ business interests.

 

Turkey’s main opposition leaders, Aydin Dogan and other press groups said Erdogan’s attacks over the weekend were an effort to silence the media over its coverage of a corruption scandal.

PHOTO CAPTION

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Arab News