Kurdish journalists jailed in Turkey face particular challenges in defending their rights in court. In many cases, they are imprisoned hundreds of miles from the court in which they are being tried. The distances involved hamper the defendants’ family vists and access to legal support. Some defendants never appear in person before a judge or hear evidence in person from witnesses against them, instead forced to appear via a video-conference system known by the acronym SEGBİS (Ses ve görüntü bilişim sistemi), the use of which has grown nearly twentyfold since 2013. Equipment failues and poor translation add to the difficulties.
Trials of Kurdish journalists share same hallmark violations
Reporters held hundreds of miles from trial location, denied right to appear before judge in person
