Search results : 103

On 8 February 2011, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) released its latest reports on Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Monaco, Spain and Turkey, adopted in the fourth round of its monitoring of the laws, policies and practices to combat racism in the Member States of the Council of Europe (for commentary on earlier reports, see IRIS 2010-9/2, IRIS 2010-4/3, IRIS 2009-10/109, IRIS 2009-8/4, IRIS 2009-5/3, IRIS 2008-4/5, IRIS 2006-6/4 and IRIS 2005-7/2). In respect of Armenia, ECRI recommends that the national authorities promote: (i) “without encroaching on the independence...

In 2002 the Turkish Broadcasting Authority (Radio ve Televizyon Üst Kurulu - the “RTÜK”) revoked the broadcasting licence of Nur Radyo Ve Televizyon Yayıncıliğı A.Ş. (Nur Radyo), a broadcasting company established in Istanbul at that time. In its motivation the RTÜK mainly referred to the fact that, despite six temporary broadcasting bans for programmes that had breached the constitutional principle of secularism or had incited hatred, Nur Radyo had continued to broadcast religious programmes. The RTÜK referred in particular to a programme “along the editorial line of Nur Radyo” that was broadcast...

In 2000 the Turkish Ministry of Culture published a book entitled “The Gypsies of Turkey”, written by an associate professor. A few months later Mr. Mustafa Aksu, who is of Roma/Gypsy origin, filed a petition with the Ministry of Culture on behalf of the Turkish Gypsy associations. In his petition, he stated that in twenty-four pages of the book Gypsies were presented as being engaged in illegitimate activities, living as “thieves, pickpockets, swindlers, robbers, usurers, beggars, drug dealers, prostitutes and brothel keepers” and being polygamist and aggressive. Gypsy women were presented as...

The collecting societies in the field of cinematographic works have joined forces under a union named “Union of Forces of Cinematographic Work Owners’ and Related Rightsholders’ Collecting Societies”. It should be noted that more than one collecting society in the same area may be founded in Turkey. The areas are listed in Article 7 of the Regulation Regarding Intellectual and Artistic Works Owners and Related Right Holders, according to which, in the field of cinematographic works, authors, performers, radio and TV organisations and film producers may set up one or more separate collecting societies...

On 29 July 2010, Dunja Mijatovic, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, presented the regular report to the OSCE Permanent Council, the organisation’s main decision-making body. The report consists of overviews of issues raised in the participating countries, activities of the Representative in the last period and planned activities for the next reporting period. A large part of the report consists of the analysis of issues raised in 26 of the OSCE participating states. In the last period the Representative had to deal with several issues concerning media freedom, such as media pluralism,...