Swedish journalist Kaj Joakim Medin has been jailed in Turkey pending trial on terrorism charges, as reported by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Medin was detained in Istanbul while covering protests against the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
The Turkish authorities cited the reason for his arrest as a protest in Stockholm in January 2023, where a mannequin resembling President Tayyip Erdogan was displayed outside city hall. Turkish authorities identified Medin as one of 15 suspects linked to the demonstration, accusing him of “insulting the president” and “membership in a terrorist organization”.
His employer, Dagens ETC, expressed concern over his detention after he was unreachable for two days. Editor-in-Chief Andreas Gustavsson stated that Medin was being punished for performing his duties as a journalist, emphasizing that he had done nothing wrong. “I know that these accusations are false, 100 percent false,” Gustavsson wrote on social media.
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard confirmed that Sweden has requested clarification from the Turkish ambassador regarding the allegations against Medin and has sought urgent consular access for him.
The crackdown on journalists in Turkey has intensified, particularly following the protests against Imamoglu’s arrest. More than 1,879 individuals have been detained since March 19, including at least 13 journalists, according to the Turkish Journalists’ Union. The Union has condemned the detentions, stating that journalists should not even be subjected to arrest for performing their jobs.
In a related incident, BBC journalist Mark Lowen was detained and subsequently deported after being held for 17 hours, with authorities claiming he posed “a threat to public order”.
The situation for journalists in Turkey remains precarious, with local and foreign reporters facing increasing challenges in their work. Karin Olsson, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Dagens ETC, stated that local journalists have long faced threats, and the environment for foreign journalists is becoming increasingly hostile.
