Journalists in prison in Turkey

6.1.2014

Question for written answer E-000043-14
to the Commission
Rule 117
Philip Claeys (NI)

For the second year in a row, Turkey has the dubious honour of being the country where the most journalists are imprisoned. In second and third place are the dictatorships Iran and China, according to figures recently published by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

The persecution of journalists is a systemic problem within Turkey.

How does the Commission evaluate the data provided by the CPJ?

How will this ongoing problem affect the future progress of the accession negotiations with Turkey?

Can other (potential) candidate Member States also imprison journalists on a large scale because of the nature of their work, or is this a privilege which is solely granted to Turkey?

OJ C 275, 21/08/2014