A Turkish court on Friday released journalist and human rights defender Bahadır Altan under judicial supervision after police detained him over a social media post criticizing the government takeover of Halk TV, a pro-opposition news station, and calling for street protests, Turkish media reported.
The İzmir 4th Criminal Magistrate of Peace barred Altan from traveling abroad and ordered him to report to a police station once a week.
Altan, a columnist for the Yeni Yaşam daily and a former board member of the İzmir branch of the Human Rights Association (İHD), was detained Thursday after being summoned to a police station for questioning on suspicion of inciting public hatred and hostility or denigrating a segment of the public. A prosecutor questioned him Friday before referring him to court with a request for judicial supervision.
In an October 14 post on X Altan said condemning the takeover was no longer enough and that without a free press, neither human rights advocacy nor political opposition could function.
“The only way forward is a united popular opposition and struggle in the streets,” Altan wrote.
The İzmir branch of the İHD condemned Altan’s detention, saying neither defending press freedom nor calling for collective political action was a crime and that detaining people over such statements undermined freedom of expression and the right to protest.
Meral Danış Beştaş, a lawmaker from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), also criticized the detention, calling it an act of intimidation.
The state-run Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) was appointed as trustee to Halk TV on October 14. Prosecutors said the operation was part of an investigation into the station’s owner, Cafer Mahiroğlu, over allegations of bribery, bid rigging and money laundering. Police raided the broadcaster’s İstanbul headquarters, and its live broadcasts were halted.
The move prompted criticism from journalists’ organizations and opposition politicians, who expressed concerns about press freedom.
