Top Turkish Court cancels ministerial authority to close media companies

Turkey’s Constitutional Court cancelled an article of a government decree issued after a coup attempt in 2016 that paved the way for the closure of scores of media companies.

The decree, issued on July 27, 2016, allowed ministers to order the closure of media companies allegedly associated with organisations found to pose a threat to national security and to confiscate their assets.

The court, responding to a request by the main opposition Republican People's Party’s (CHP), cancelled the relevant article and paragraphs of the decree by eight votes to seven, the Anka news agency reported on Thursday.

Sixteen TV channels including IMC TV, two radio channels, 45 newspapers and 15 magazines, as well as 29 publishing houses allegedly associated with terrorist organisations were closed via the decree, Anka said.

“The administrative court should also annul the closures in line with the Constitutional Court decision, and the legal consequences of the closure orders should be eliminated,” human rights lawyer Kerem Altıparmak told the news agency.