The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on Turkish authorities to immediately release journalist İrem Delice, who was jailed under the country’s disinformation law over a social media post announcing the death of a local woman who shares President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s surname.
“İrem Delice should be released immediately, and authorities must stop their abuse of this vague legislation to criminalize journalism,” Özgür Öğret, CPJ’s Turkey representative, said Wednesday. “Even if mistakes were made, nobody deserves to go to prison in this case.”
Delice is a reporter for Aydın Denge, a local news outlet in western Turkey’s Aydın province. She and three other employees were detained on August 26 after the outlet published a death notice for a local woman named Gülşen Erdoğan and promoted it on social media with an image reading “Erdoğan passed away.”
The report itself identified the deceased as Gülşen Erdoğan, but authorities opened an investigation on suspicion of “publicly disseminating misleading information,” citing the fact that she shared a surname with the Turkish president.
Publisher Emin Aydın, responsible news editor Yeşim Ülker and reporters İslam Keleş and Delice were initially released under judicial supervision. Prosecutors appealed the decision concerning Delice, who wrote the death notice, and a court subsequently ordered her jailed pending the outcome of the investigation.
Aydın said in a column that the newspaper routinely publishes local death notices and had no intention of misleading readers or suggesting that President Erdoğan had died. He acknowledged that the social media image could have been misunderstood but said an editorial choice should not be treated as evidence of criminal intent.
CPJ said Delice’s detention was another example of Turkish authorities using Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code, commonly known as the disinformation law, against journalists.
Turkey adopted the provision in 2022, making it a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison to publicly disseminate false information about matters including security, public order and public health in a way deemed capable of causing fear, panic or concern.
At least 83 journalists have faced 114 charges under the provision since it took effect, according to figures cited by CPJ. The press freedom group joined 22 other organizations in April in calling on Turkey to stop using the law against journalists and to repeal it.
CPJ said it could not determine whether the investigation of Delice and the three other Aydın Denge employees would result in a trial. The group said the Aydın Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office did not respond to its request for comment.
