New lawsuits against Turkish Cypriot journalists for insulting the Turkish State 

Question for written answer  E-000536/2021
to the Commission
Rule 138
Demetris Papadakis (S&D), Lefteris Christoforou (PPE), Loucas Fourlas (PPE), Costas Mavrides (S&D), Niyazi Kizilyürek (The Left), Giorgos Georgiou (The Left)

More and more cases are being reported of Turkish Cypriot journalists being charged on the pretext that they have insulted the Turkish State through posts and comments on social media during the procedure to elect a new leader of the Turkish Cypriot community in occupied Cyprus.

These constitute repeated attempts by Ankara to intimidate and gag journalists and progressive Turkish Cypriot citizens, violating their right to freedom of opinion and expression.

In view of this:

• 1.Is the Commission aware of these events?
• 2.What steps is it prepared to take to protect journalists in occupied Cyprus, who are EU citizens?