Dutch Journalist May Face Five Years In Prison For ‘Terror Propaganda’

Turkish prosecutors accuse Dutch journalist, Frederike Geerdink, of engaging propaganda on behalf of the Kurdish separatists and demand a 5-year imprisonment.

Frederike Geerdink, a Dutch journalist residing in Turkey for about seven years, may face five years in prison for her messages on social networks, considered by Turkish authorities as ‘terrorist propaganda”, the German “Spiegel” magazine reported on Tuesday.

Geerdink wrote a lot about the Kurdish minority living in the mainly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir and the surrounding area. Her social media activity was considered a crime and Geerdink was charged with being involved in a propaganda campaign for the armed rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has been struggling against the Turkish state for 30 years.

Geerdink was arrested and interrogated on January 6. She pleaded not guilty and denied all the allegations.

The first hearing for her case is expected to take place on April, 8.

Over the last few months, the Turkish government has become more concerned about growing media freedom, with many journalists under increasing pressure, as reported by AP. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists in New York, in 2012 and 2013 Turkey topped the list of countries with the most imprisoned journalists.