A German Reporter’s 100th Day In A Turkish Prison

Die Welt’s reporter Deniz Yucel marks his 100th day in a Turkish prison today on charges of “terror propaganda” and “inciting hatred in society”. The Turkish criminal code may easily be interpreted for any act or speech to be evaluated as a crime, especially under the state of emergency laws which have been enacted since last year's failed coup attempt.

Turkish President Erdoğan himself declared Yucel a “terrorist”, “a German spy” and “an agent terrorist". 

However, the Turkish president, or any prosecutor in the entire country, has not provided evidence to prove these accusations.

Yücel got married in the prison and his wife wrote a very touching letter in Turkish newspaper, Evrensel on the 100th day of his imprisonment.

"As I walk to Deniz's cell every Monday, every single fence I pass sticks in my heart. I spend the week ahead of our next meeting pulling out the wires embedded in my heart. Monday, my heart bleeds; the rest of the week, my hands bleed. Imagine having to do this every week," she wrote

There are more than 120 journalists behind bars in Turkey. Globally in 2016, one-third of all imprisoned journalists, media workers and executives were in Turkey’s prisons, with the vast majority waiting to be brought to trial, according to Amnesty International.