NEW ISSUE OUT NOW—TWELVE TEXTS ABOUT TURKEY
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WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN TURKEY?
Turkey has now surpassed both Iran and China as the one country in the world that is holding
the most journalists and writers imprisoned. Vaguely phrased anti-terrorist laws make it possible for the government to stifle critical voices from all spheres of society. This seventh issue of the Dissident Blog is wholly dedicated to presenting recent political developments in the country. People whose voices we share here have paid a high price for maintaining the struggle to both reveal and to discuss the Turkish regime’s lack of respect for democracy and for the freedom of speech. In his introductory note Ola Larsmo writes:
“It is therefore of vital importance that we understand how the movement towards democracy in Turkey is being threatened. Those who are best at explaining the situation are of course the country’s own authors and writers. In this issue of the Dissident Blog we have tried to collect a spectra of different perspectives on the situation in Turkey: from Muhsin Kizilkaya’s eagle-eyed overview of the modern history of the freedom of speech in the country to the young film director Mizgin Müjde Arslan’s own testimony of the consequences of dealing with sensitive topics in film.”
