The Centre for Turkey Studies (CEFTUS) is delighted to invite you to a Westminster Debate with keynote speaker renowned journalist and author Mr Can Dundar.
The event will take place on Wednesday 29 June 2016, between 7.00PM and 9.00PM in Committee Room 10, House of Commons. Please note that security checks are required to enter the House of Commons, so we kindly ask you to arrive at 6.30PM, allowing the event to start and end promptly on time.
Mr Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of Cumhuriyet daily and Mr Erdem Gul, Ankara bureau chief of the newspaper have been taken the court by President Erdogan personally for allegations of revelation of state secrets in a May 2015 news story. Dundar, who recently survived an attack by a gunman who attempted to shoot him outside a courthouse in Istanbul, sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison and Gul to five years. This court case has become a wider uproar about freedom of press in Turkey as any dissenting news reporting has been targeted by the authorities on allegations of ‘terrorism activities’. Whilst Freedom House ranks Turkey’s press freedom as ‘not free’, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported that Turkey is the fifth worst jailer of journalists globally in 2015, with 14 journalists currently behind the bars in the country.
In this highly crucial event, Mr Can Dundar will speak on the deteriorating press freedom in Turkey and share his analysis on the current political developments.
This event is kindly hosted by Seema Malthotra MP for Feltham and Heston.
We look forward to welcoming you at this joint forum.
Booking is required for this event to ensure adequate seating availability.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Speaker biography
Mr Can Dundar is a journalist, columnist and author. He is currently editor-in-chief of Cumhuriyet daily. He studied at London School of Journalism in the UK and holds a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Middle East Technical University (ODTU). He was a lecturer of Cultural Studies at Ankara University Faculty of Communication and at ODTU Political Sciences Public Administration. He worked for several newspapers and magazines including Yanki (1979-1983), Hürriyet (1983-1985), Nokta (1985), Haftaya Bakıs (1987), Soz (1987-1988) and Tempo (1988). Dundar began his TV career at state television TRT. He has made and presented several programmes and documentaries including ‘40 Dakika‘, ‘Canli Gaste’, ‘Sari Zeybek’, ‘Golgedekiler’, ‘Aynalar’. He has over 30 books published.