Turkey Praised for Press Freedom

By: Louis Meixler, Associated Press Writer (AP) The president of the World Association of Newspapers said Monday that Turkey has made considerable progress in expanding freedom of the press and could serve as an example to other Islamic nations.

Seok Hyun Hong, speaking at the opening of the group's annual congress, said the newspaper association had previously turned down offers to hold its annual meeting in Turkey.

"I do feel confident and comfortable in recognizing significant advances in the field of freedom of expression and that is why WAN (World Association of Newspapers) is able to come to Istanbul this year with a good conscience," Hong said.

Hong spoke at the opening of the 57th World Newspaper Congress and 11th World Editors Forum. More than 1,000 representatives from newspapers in 85 countries were in Istanbul for the meetings.

Turkey can serve as an example of a Muslim country that "can promote and enjoy tolerance, democracy and full human rights," Hong added. "These rights and other basic democratic values are outlawed or severely restricted in the great majority of countries with predominantly Muslim populations."

Hong said, however, that "limitations of free expression remain possible in both law and in practice ... (some cases) suggest that it is not yet fully possible to defend and promote human rights here without fear of harassment or prosecution."

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has made Turkey's drive for membership in the European Union a cornerstone of his foreign policy, said in a speech that his government was working to further expand press freedoms.

"I want to state this clearly and openly. I am against imprisoning people for their opinions, thoughts or beliefs, provided these do not turn into actions. I am saying this as a person who has paid the burden," Erdogan said at a later press conference.

Erdogan served a four-month jail term in 1999 for reciting what the courts deemed an inflammatory poem.

Turkey has passed reforms that limit the role of the military in politics, broaden freedom of expression and allow greater rights for minority Kurds. Last year, parliament also passed reforms to ensure that journalists are not required to disclose their sources to authorities.

Diplomats, however, say some of the reforms have yet to be fully implemented.

Throughout the world, 53 journalists were killed while working last year, Hong said. They included 15 journalists killed in Iraq, according to the group's Web site.

The World Association of Newspapers, which meets each year to promote press freedom and the industry's financial health, presented its Golden Pen of Freedom award to Uzbek journalist Ruslan Sharipov this year.

Sharipov, who leads an independent group that focuses on media freedoms, is under house arrest. Human rights activist Elena Urlaeva accepted the award in his name.