A law that was formed without any consultation with journalists and media organizations cannot be a remedy to disinformation.

As seven leading journalism organizations, including the International Press Institute (IPI) National Committee in Turkey, we are concerned that the proposed law on disinformation could lead to one of the heaviest censorship and self-censorship mechanisms in the history of the Republic.

The bill, which was prepared behind closed doors by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), has been sent to the parliament. It adds a new crime titled “distributing deceptive information publicly” to the criminal code with prison sentences. It also gives the administration new powers to sanction the media with fines, advertising bans, and bandwidth throttling.