- Journalist Tuğba Tekerek, who was arrested on the charge of “being the manager of Kaos GL’s Instagram account” after reporting on the Georgian elections and has been held in the pre-trial detention ward of Sincan Prison for three days, has sent a letter
- “Because some do not see me as an ‘acceptable journalist,’ I was swept up in the operation, arrested on an accusation that has nothing whatsoever to do with reality, and am being held in a pre-trial detention ward.”
- “It is clear that these arrests are intended to intimidate journalists and punish journalism. But there will always be journalists who pursue the truth. There will always be journalists who do not betray their profession.”
Journalist and writer Tuğba Tekerek, who has been in pre-trial detention for three days over a report she wrote for Kaos GL about the Georgian elections, sent a letter from Sincan Prison to the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), which is representing her. In her letter, Tekerek said she has no membership, volunteer or employment relationship with the association and described the accusation against her as “absurd.” Tekerek’s letter, in which she also thanked her colleagues for their solidarity, reads as follows:
“An accusation that has nothing whatsoever to do with reality”
“I went to Georgia in 2024 with an international group of journalists to cover the elections there. We met with representatives of many political parties, media outlets, and NGOs. As a freelance journalist, I reported on the meetings I held in Georgia for various outlets. One of these outlets was the Kaos GL news website. After the editors published my report on the website, they also shared it on Kaos GL’s Instagram account as an exclusive report, captioned ‘Tuğba Tekerek’s report.’ This is the extent of my ‘connection’ to Kaos GL’s Instagram account.
I live in Istanbul. I am not a member or volunteer of the Kaos GL association in Ankara. I have not participated in any of its activities and have never held any position there.
Despite all this being clear, I am absurdly being accused of being the manager of Kaos GL’s Instagram account. It is an accusation with no basis, no evidence, and no technical report to support it.
Because some do not see me as an ‘acceptable journalist,’ I was swept up in the operation, arrested on an accusation that has nothing whatsoever to do with reality, and am being held in a pre-trial detention ward.
It is clear that these kinds of arrests are intended to intimidate journalists and punish journalism. But there will always be journalists who pursue the truth. There will always be journalists who do not betray their profession.
Your support means a great deal. My deepest thanks to everyone who has shown solidarity with me. I look forward to receiving your letters.”
Mailing address for Tuğba Tekerek
Recipient: Tuğba Tekerek, B-1
Address: Sincan Women’s Closed Prison
Adalet Neighborhood, Sincan Penitentiary Institutions Campus
Yenikent, Sincan/Ankara, Türkiye -
What happened?
Tuğba Tekerek was detained in Istanbul on the night of 13–14 September as part of an operation called “Ailem Güvende” (“My Family Is Safe”) targeting LGBTI+ organizations, activists and rights defenders. During her questioning at the Morality Bureau of the Istanbul Police Department, Tekerek was asked about Kaos GL’s structure, funding and social media accounts.
As part of the investigation, it was alleged that Tekerek managed Kaos GL’s Instagram account. Tekerek, however, said she was neither a member nor an employee of the association, did not use its Instagram account and had no institutional relationship with the organization.
Tekerek was also questioned about her journalistic work covering the 2024 elections in Georgia. She said she had prepared a report based on an interview with a civil society organization working on LGBTI+ issues in Georgia and submitted the report to Kaos GL. She said she received a fee for the report but had no involvement in how it was shared on social media.
Tekerek was later transferred from Istanbul to Ankara, where she gave a statement to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. The prosecution requested Tekerek’s pre-trial detention along with that of members of Kaos GL’s executive and supervisory boards. In its submission, the prosecution alleged that Tekerek was “an administrator of Kaos GL’s Instagram account.”
In her statement before the Ankara 6th Criminal Judgeship of Peace, Tekerek again said she had no institutional connection to Kaos GL and did not manage the association’s social media account. She said she had submitted a report to Kaos GL as part of her journalistic work and had no other relationship with the association.
