While the reactions against the appointment of a trustee to Halk TV continued, members of DİSK Devrimci Emekliler Union (Dev Emekli-Sen) came together in Konak district of Izmir and protested the decision. Retirees called for a fight against trustee practices, stating that freedom of the press and the public's right to receive information were targeted. DİSK Dev Emekli-Sen Aegean Regional Chief Representative Hüseyin Özkaynak, who read the press release on behalf of the group, said that the government was trying to cover up the economic crisis with oppression and censorship policies.
Stating that the burden of the economic and social crisis is left on the shoulders of workers and retirees, Özkaynak said, "The government is trying to cover up the misery it has created with oppression, censorship and trustee policies." During the statement, slogans such as "The trustees will leave, we will stay" and "We will win by resisting" were frequently chanted.
“ATTACK ON THE PEOPLE'S FREEDOM OF INFORMATION”
Arguing that the press was also targeted after the trustee practices against the municipalities, Özkaynak said, "This anti-democratic mentality, which violated the people's right to vote and be elected and the will of the ballot box with the trustees appointed to the municipalities yesterday, has today targeted Halk TV, which is the channel for the public to learn the truth. The trustee intervention against Halk TV is a clear attack on the citizens' freedom of information and freedom of the press."
Claiming that the government aims to silence opposing voices, Özkaynak said, "The government, which cannot tolerate any words, any facts, and any dissenting voices other than its own, aims to darken the screens in order to hide the fire in the market stalls, the empty pot in the retiree's kitchen, and the deepening poverty."
“TRUSTEE MENTALITY IS THE DENIAL OF DEMOCRACY”
Stating that trustee practices harm democratic rights and freedoms, Özkaynak argued that the judiciary is used to silence opposing voices. Özkaynak said, "The trustee mentality is the denial of democracy. This mentality, which usurps the will of the ballot box and turns the judiciary into a stick to silence opposition voices, now aims to create a society with one voice by taking the independent press under control."
Özkaynak said that the facts cannot be hidden by repressive policies and said, "Millions who have not bowed to injustice throughout history and defended their will will not stand by and watch the screens in favor of labor, workers and retirees be silenced."
“WE WILL NOT RETIRE FROM THE STRUGGLE FOR DEMOCRACY”
Emphasizing that retirees are fighting not only for their economic rights but also for democratic rights and freedoms, Özkaynak said, "We are in favor of a free press, press workers and Halk TV. We will defend our right to receive news on screens, just as we defend our will in the ballot box, our bread in the streets, and our rights in the squares. We will continue to expand the struggle for an equal country for a free, democratic and fair Turkey. We will not surrender to trustees, we will not give up our right to receive news, we will not retire from the struggle for democracy!" he said.
ERCAN ÇINARLI: “FREE PRESS CANNOT BE SILENCED!”
Reacting to the appointment of a trustee to Halk TV, DİSK Revolutionary Retirees Union Central Executive Board Member Ercan Çınarlı stated that the intervention was against the public's right to receive news and said, "The free press cannot be silenced. They are usurping the people's right to receive news, they are trying to prevent accurate news from reaching the public. If the people's right to receive information is a constitutional right, why are you appointing trustees to the journalists and media organizations that report these news? We absolutely condemn this intervention against Halk TV."
Arguing that what is happening is not limited to freedom of the press, but is directly related to economic and social problems, Çınarlı said, "For years, they said there are no resources for workers, laborers and retirees. Those who gave nothing to farmers, teachers and women condemned the majority of the society to poverty. We are talking about robberies worth billions of liras and dollars. However, the issue is not only these numbers, we are faced with an understanding that will lead the country's economy to a much greater destruction in the future. Those who call the thief a thief." "They are trying to silence us with operations, but thieves are walking around on the streets. Such a management approach is unacceptable," he said.
Emphasizing that the social opposition must fight together, Çınarlı said, "As the Revolutionary Pensioners' Union, we are organized all over Turkey. We are a part of the social opposition and we carry an important responsibility. We do not believe that these problems can be overcome without increasing the social opposition and getting rid of the one-man rule. Trade unions, non-governmental organizations and opposition political parties should be a single fist. We express our demand for rights, law and humane life in the squares. We continue our struggle against hunger, poverty and the AKP's black order. "We will continue. If we fight tirelessly, we will destroy this paper tiger. We need to join arms and destroy the AKP government," he said.
SAIT TEMUR: “RETIRED PEOPLE WILL NOT BE SILENT, WE WILL BE IN THE SQUARES!”
Sait Temur, Çiğli Representative of the Revolutionary Pensioners Union (DEV Emekli-Sen) affiliated with DİSK, reacted to the appointment of a trustee to Halk TV and said that retirees are fighting not only for their economic and personal rights, but also to defend press freedom. Temur said, "Today, for the first time, we are here not to demand our own personal rights, but to show solidarity with Halk TV. Halk TV is a channel that makes news and serves the people's right to receive news, which is their most natural right. There is nothing more natural than retirees standing by Halk TV."
Temur, who also supported the detained journalists, said, "I know all of our journalist friends. I also know Murat and İsmail. They are friends like diamonds. They do not have anything to do with money. They earn their living from journalism. Today, these colleagues of mine are in prison. Of course, we will be with them, we will continue our solidarity. We will continue to be in the squares until the journalists have their freedom and the retirees have their rights. The retirees will not remain silent."
