If journalists, editors, cameramen, social media workers are arrested in a country, it is not the “crime” that should be discussed there, is the relationship that power establishes with truth. Because every power that fears the truth first targets those who write it.
Today's wave of arrests against communication workers is presented as an isolated “judicial activity”, but it is actually part of a much deeper problem: An attempt to control the truth. The government wants to control not only the streets but also words, images and memory. In the past and in the present, the rulers have been uncomfortable with journalists who report on corruption, sect-trade-politics relations. This is precisely why İsmail Arı was arrested.
However, journalism is not a crime, but a public duty. This duty is not only to convey information, but also to monitor power, make the invisible visible and ask questions on behalf of society. This is precisely why communication workers are targeted. Because they hold up the mirror that the government does not want to see.
And it is not just about freedom of expression. It is also about labor issue with the judiciary. Communication workers, who already work in precarious conditions, with low wages and often without a union, are now facing judicial pressure. This situation is a result of economic
Freedom of expression exists not only for ideas that are accepted, but also for ideas that offend. If only what is “acceptable” can be spoken in a country, there can be no talk of freedom there. If communication workers are forced to report news under the pressure of censorship for fear of the future, the conclusion to be drawn from this is to come together more, to look for ways to organize, and to raise the class struggle against the class represented by the political power.
This is exactly what is happening today. Every word, every news report, every image that goes beyond what is acceptable is turned into a potential “crime”.
And what is the social consequence of this?
Attempts are made to spread fear.
Self-censorship becomes commonplace.
Reality becomes blurred.
And the most dangerous: Society loses the right to know what is going on.
That is why the arrest of communication workers is not just a problem of one professional group. It is directly a problem of society. right to information is a directed intervention. Because every silenced journalist is in fact a silenced society.
In conclusion, the issue is clear:
If journalists are not free, no one is really free.
And that is why the struggle today is not just for the freedom of a few; for the truth itself must be given. Journalists are on the side of the people, on the side of the truth.