Turkey’s state-run TV refuses to air CHP ad 'targeting gov’t'

ISTANBUL

This screenshot from the CHP ad shows a cat walking past a power substation, in a reference to the power cuts in the last local polls, which were caused by cats entering the substations, according to the energy minister.

The state-run Turkish Radio Television (TRT) has refused to air an election campaign advertisement by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) “because it directly targets the government,” a senior party official said April 11. 

“The TRT, by deciding not to air our campaign ad, has made another scandalous decision,” Bülent Tezcan, deputy leader of the CHP, said in a written statement. 

“The decision by the TRT, which airs [ruling Justice and Development Party] AKP ads that include religious symbols and the flag although it is forbidden by law, is illegal. In all countries, the aim of the state television funded by the taxes is to ensure equality in their broadcast. It is apparent that the TRT officials have no boundaries in siding with the government,” the statement added.

According to an official document, sent by the TRT to the CHP and shared on Twitter by the main opposition party’s deputy leader Enis Berberoğlu, the TRT refused to air the ad because some of the slogans in the ad
“directly target the ruling party, which is also running in the elections,” citing a law banning ads that include “defamatory and abusive remarks that go beyond criticism.”

“How can we make politics in a democracy without targeting the government? I’m open to suggestions,” Berberoğlu wrote on his twitter account.