The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network said it will not take down reports about convicted Turkish fraudster Yasam Ayavefe and described an order from a Turkish court to remove the articles as an attack on media freedom.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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<\/p>\nPhoto Illustration: Mariia Shalabaieva\/Unsplash<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) said on Thursday that Balkan Insight articles about Yasam Ayavefe will remain online, and described attempts by the convicted fraudster to remove the articles via the Turkish courts as an attempt to silence the truth.<\/p>\n BIRN received an official request on August 7 from the Access Providers Association, a private legal entity that implements court-ordered website access-blocking decisions in Turkey, to remove six about Ayavefe published by Balkan Insight in 2022 and 2023.<\/p>\n The Access Providers Association cited decisions by a court in Nizip in Gaziantep province after a complaint filed by Ayavefe\u2019s lawyers claiming that the articles were not in the public interest.<\/p>\n The articles listed by Ayavefe\u2019s lawyers \u201cdo not contribute to the public interest, are not newsworthy, and in this case the requested content should be evaluated within the scope of the right to be forgotten\u201d, the court said on August 7 as it ordered the deletion of the articles within four hours.<\/p>\n Milka Domanovic, BIRN\u2019s regional director, said that the articles will not be deleted and described the attempt by Ayavefe\u2019s lawyers to have them removed via the courts as unacceptable pressure on independent media.<\/p>\n \u201cBIRN stands behind its previous articles about Yasam Ayavefe and refuses to delete them. They are based on facts. Trying to take down our articles in various ways represents an attack on press freedom and attempted online censorship,\u201d said Domanovic.<\/p>\n \u201cSince the publication of an investigation by BIRN\u2019s flagship publication Balkan Insight in 2022, we have been subjected to cyberattacks, fake copyright claims and requests from Ayavefe to delete these articles, and finally we have received a Turkish court order to delete them,\u201d Domanovic added.<\/p>\n She noted that Turkish courts have no jurisdiction over BIRN as a media house based outside Turkey.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will not delete those articles for the sake of press freedom and solidarity with our colleagues in Turkey who face online censorship on a daily basis,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n The court also ordered the takedown of a news article published by Free Web Turkey, a platform established by the Media and Law Studies Association, MLSA to monitor online censorship.<\/p>\n The article explained how Ayavefe has used the courts to block online content including official material published by the Turkish police about him. The MLSA article also mentioned BIRN\u2019s case.<\/p>\n Ali Safa Korkut from the MLSA told BIRN that the court decision is a clear example of how the courts are used for censorship.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a tragi-comedy. In Turkey, a person who was subject to an international [Interpol] red notice issued by the Turkish authorities contacted those same Turkish authorities again to block access to posts on official websites and social media accounts,\u201d Korkut explained.<\/p>\n Repeated cyberattacks on BIRN<\/b><\/p>\n In September 2022, BIRN\u2019s Balkan Insight website and the website of its Greek partner media outlet Solomon\u00a0came under DDoS attack<\/a>\u00a0after the publication of an\u00a0investigation<\/a>\u00a0into how Ayavefe \u2013 despite being convicted by a Turkish court in 2017 of defrauding online gamblers and arrested in Greece in 2019 trying to cross the border into Bulgaria on a false passport \u2013 got honorary Greek citizenship.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/birn.eu.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Cover-Final-1920x1080-1-e1690295216647-1536x865-1.jpg\")