Is it a human right to have access to the arts? Although Article 27 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits“, it is not considered a “right” when it comes to culture and the arts. Art is still seen as a luxury. Perhaps for this reason, in semi-democratic countries like Turkey, where the understanding of human rights is not well established, attacks on freedom of artistic expression are not recognized as human rights violations.
In this article, I will try to remind the fact that freedom of artistic expression is a human right, based on the reports of the Platform for Monitoring Artistic Freedom (SÖZ Platformu),which monitors violations of freedom of artistic expression in Turkey.
What is “SÖZ”?
SÖZ is a project supported by the Friedrich Neumann Foundation, which is monitoring and reporting on all violations of freedom of expression in the field of culture and arts in Turkey since January 2023. The word “söz” means “word” in Turkish and it is the acronym of “Sanat Özgürlüğünü İzleme Platformu” (Platform for Monitoring Artistic Freedom).
The SÖZ team monitors all kinds of issues that restrict freedom of expression in the field of culture and arts in Turkey, such as censorship/autocensorship, legal obstacles, event bans, economic pressure, gender discrimination, copyright violations, and tries to give a voice to those involved in the issue through special interviews published on reportare.com website.
As a member of this team, the monthly and annual reports we publish have given me a much better understanding of how freedom of artistic expression is directly related to political, social, economic and cultural freedom in a country. While it is relatively easy to identify and speak out against overt censorship in the arts, it is not so easy to identify implicit censorship through legal, economic or cultural codes. In particular, the oppression of groups that nation states do not consider to be ‘acceptable citizens’ can be ignored even by subjects in the field of culture and the arts.
Kurdish community, Women and LGBTI+’s Targeted
In the case of Turkey, this situation is particularly evident in the repression of Kurdish, women and LGBTI+ or pro-LGBTI+ artists. According to the 2023 SÖZ report, “the most frequently used arguments for restricting freedom of artistic expression were ‘protecting the unity and integrity of society’ and ‘taking action against activities that would corrupt the morals of young people’. In this context, the most targeted categories of artists and art lovers were Kurds, women and LGBTI+ people. Hate speech against women and LGBTI+ artists in the field of arts, which also includes visual performances such as music, cinema and comedy, has increased significantly in recent years and comes from many actors, ranging from political leaders to various media organs. This situation leads artists to self-censorship and paves the way for the gradual loss of gender equality in the country. After the illegal annulment of the Istanbul Convention, there has been a serious setback for women’s rights in Turkey, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for artists to speak out on this issue. For example, Merve Dizdar, the first Turkish artist to win an award at Cannes, was targeted by many political and influential figures for her critical remarks about gender equality in Turkey in her acceptance speech.
Neoliberal Policies Restrict the Field of Art
On the other hand, while neoliberal policies are transforming the artistic field into a commercial market, in a country struggling with an economic crisis, the right to access culture and the arts is the first right to be abolished in the name of ‘austerity measures’. As a result of the deep economic crisis in Turkey in recent years, many publishing houses, theatres and cinemas, bookstores and magazines have either been closed down or have had to face a serious contraction.
At the same time, ticket prices have risen significantly as a result of increased costs in the music and performance sector, which is already struggling due to the impact of the pandemic. Spring festivals at universities or music festivals across the country have been cancelled/banned on the grounds that Kurdish, Armenian or LGBTI+ supporters were performing. In addition, spring festivals at private universities could not provide an alternative as ticket prices were too high for students to afford. There is a serious regression in access to culture and the arts, especially for young people.
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Does Law Hinder Art?
The use of the law as a means of ‘intimidation’ of artists is one of the main obstacles to freedom of artistic expression in Turkey. “In 2023, 91 people were detained, 2 people were arrested, 7 people were investigated and 34 people were tried in court in Turkey for their artistic activities. 10 artists were sentenced to prison or fined”. Artists are being investigated or detained for a variety of reasons, starting from what they post on social media to what they say on stage. For this reason, not only political criticism by artists, but also any social positioning that the government does not welcome, is perceived as a criminal offence. As a result, self-censorship is widespread and certain artists are no longer favoured by producers and promoters, or face lawsuits.
Struggles of Art Organisations on the Rise
The pandemic revealed in a very concrete way the precarious situation of artists in Turkey, especially in performance-based arts such as music and cinema. In the aftermath of the pandemic, there has been a significant increase in the number of organisations in all areas of the arts and artists’ efforts to protect their rights. For example, cultural and artistic organisations such as the Publishing House Workers Platform, the Omuz Solidarity and Sharing Network and the Theatre Cooperative are fighting for the right of art to be guaranteed and protected in Turkey.
A holistic assessment of the whole situation leads to the conclusion that freedom of artistic expression is one of the most fundamental requirements of a ‘social, democratic state of law’. Where there is no freedom of artistic expression, marginalised groups in the country are increasingly silenced and it becomes impossible to build an egalitarian society as economic, social or cultural access to the arts becomes more difficult. The Platform for Monitoring Freedom of Art continues to monitor and report on violations of freedom of artistic expression in Turkey, not only in the field of culture and arts, but also in order to achieve a more democratic structure in the country as a whole.
About the author …
Tuğba Sivri Cinar was born in 1990 in Istanbul/Turkey. She has a bachelor’s degree in Public Relations and a master’s degree in Media and Communication Studies. She did her PhD in Turkish Language and Literature with her thesis on neo-conservatism and gender in Wattpad novels. She worked as an assistant coordinator in the Art Interrupted project. Within this project, she helped to produce “Askıda Sanat”, a 12-part video-news series on the oppression in the field of culture and arts. She evaluated current culture and art events in the program Pop Kritik, which she prepared and presented on Artı TV. She was the project coordinator of the Platform for Monitoring Artistic Freedom (SÖZ) and continues to run the project.
