International body condemns censorship in Turkey

A prominent member of the International Publishers Association has called on Turkey to clear journalists, writers and translators of their charges, criticizing the Turkish authorities' stance on freedom of expression, Hurriyet Daily News reports. 

Swedish publisher and the chair of the body's Freedom to Publish Committee Ola Wallin came to Turkey to meet prominent Turkish publishers Ragıp Zarakolu and İrfan Sancı, who are also facing charges for publishing a book written by renowned French poet Guillaume Apollinaire.

“Writers, journalists, translators and publishers working in Turkey are threatened by scores of laws and regulations, specifically the country’s Anti-Terror Laws and Penal Code articles that pretend to defend the nation’s dignity, and pretend to combat racial hatred, obscenity and defamation,”  a statement released after the recent meeting of the group reads.