Turkish cartoonists threatened after Charlie Hebdo attacks
Turkish satirical journalists and cartoonists have been warned via phone and over social media to "learn" from the attack on Charlie Hebdo and be careful who they antagonize.
I learned about the Charlie Hebdo attack from a phone call in the early morning hours of Jan. 7. The messenger was a political satirist and friend calling from Istanbul. He was calm as he explained the brutal attack. Then he said, “I received a call from a private number. The voice on the line ordered me to turn on the television to take a sneak peak at my own future.” It was not the first time my friend had been threatened. When I asked what he was going to do, he replied with his usual dark humor, “I will first mourn the loss of my colleagues and caricaturize my sorrow.”
Reactions among the Turkish public to the attack in France have varied widely. One group includes Turks showing solidarity with the #JeSuisCharlie hashtag on social media. One can see the high volume of solidarity tweets from Turkey on the day of the attack. There were also protests on the streets of Istanbul.
The Joint June Movement — a protest platform keeping the Gezi spirit alive and known for its opposition to the Justice and Development Party (AKP) — organized a “We are Charlie” march with the slogan “We are not afraid.” Turkish cartoonists also joined in the global movement to stand in solidarity with the victims and their colleagues, publishing and sharing dozens of Charlie Hebdo cartoons and dedicating drawings to the victims.
Tuncay Akgun, executive editor of the prominent Turkish satirical magazine Leman, shared photos of the deceased Charlie Hebdo artists over social media with the caption “They were our friends.” Accompanying a photo of cartoonist and writer Georges Wolinski on a visit to Istanbul's famous Eyup Sultan Mosque, the publication asked, “Is this man the enemy of Islam?”
