Rights Monitoring, Documentation and Solidarity Project for Kurdish Women Journalists
A new project is being launched to document and raise awareness of human rights violations against Kurdish women journalists and to strengthen solidarity mechanisms.
The “Rights Monitoring, Documentation and Solidarity Project for Kurdish Women Journalists,” jointly implemented by the Mezopotamya Women Journalists Association (MKG) and the Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG), aims to systematically monitor, document and raise national and international awareness of human rights violations experienced by Kurdish women journalists in Türkiye, particularly in the course of their professional activities. Supported by the European Union and implemented in cooperation with the Human Rights Foundation of Türkiye (HRFT), the project seeks to establish a joint monitoring and solidarity mechanism to protect journalists' rights and freedoms.
At a time of increasing pressure on journalists in Türkiye, Kurdish women journalists face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and human rights violations due to their journalistic activities, ethnic identity and gender. These violations, ranging from detention and arrest to physical attacks, obstruction of news coverage, digital harassment, threats and censorship, directly affect their ability to carry out their professional work. However, significant gaps remain in the systematic documentation and analysis of these violations, as well as in monitoring the related legal proceedings.
As part of the project, human rights violations against Kurdish women journalists will be monitored on a daily basis. The information collected will be verified, documented and subjected to regular analysis. Reports will be published in Turkish, Kurdish and English and submitted to national and international human rights mechanisms, journalists' professional organizations and relevant institutions. Through these efforts, the project aims to increase the visibility of violations experienced by Kurdish women journalists, promote accountability for those responsible and support effective advocacy efforts.
Strengthening solidarity networks among women journalists is another key component of the project. To this end, the discrimination, violence, threats and professional exclusion experienced by women journalists will be addressed from a gender perspective, alongside capacity-building initiatives and solidarity activities. The project seeks to prevent journalists from becoming isolated in the face of rights violations and to strengthen their access to mechanisms for seeking justice and redress.
Drawing on its longstanding work in monitoring, documenting and reporting on press freedom violations, DFG will contribute to the project's data collection, verification, analysis and reporting processes. MKG, building on the experiences of women journalists in the field, will lead gender-focused monitoring and analysis activities and play an active role in strengthening solidarity among women journalists and bringing violations to public attention.
Beyond documenting the multiple and intersecting human rights violations experienced by Kurdish women journalists, the project aims to strengthen the foundations for collective action and solidarity against these violations. Its core objectives include establishing a sustainable monitoring and advocacy mechanism to protect press freedom and freedom of expression, promote safe working conditions for journalists, and ensure that women journalists can carry out their professional activities under equal and free conditions.
Project Implementers: Mezopotamya Women Journalists Association (MKG) and Dicle Fırat Journalists Association (DFG)
Supported by: European Union
In cooperation with: Human Rights Foundation of Türkiye (HRFT)
This project is supported by the European Union.
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