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my name is john didn't die i lived in exile. i served time in prison and. i was a marked man that i could i would die in prison or leave the country i chose exile . in the autumn of twenty sixteen i moved to. i'd left my country my home and my wife behind. on the last day of september twenty sixth the police stormed and searched our home in istanbul they took away my wife's passport when i was in prison we'd meet separated by a glass partition now we talk to each other on the internet.

the author orators have been holding my wife hostage for a year now and filed no charges against her only crime was to be married to me. july fifteenth twenty sixteen was a turning point in our lives i was in spain and watched coverage of the turkish cure attempt on t.v. crew was defeated with the help of the turkish people. it was clear that president out of one would use these events to strengthen his grip on power that's exactly what he did through state sponsored repression. my name is cut your dice i'm a journalist before the coup attempt i'd been to turkey several times. afterward i noticed that the people i interviewed were reluctant to speak up i saw right away

that the coup attempt would make the situation much worse for critics of the government in turkey. gendron dar was the editor in chief of the newspaper general yet now he's on the government's list of wanted criminals. i met john in barcelona where i was working on a story he told me at the time that he couldn't go back to turkey and was thinking about moving to berlin he arrived a few weeks later the number of turks seeking asylum in germany tripled after the coup attempt john is one of the most prominent people to have gone into exile he and i decided that we would give these new expatriates a voice and tell their stories. and. so this is a new wave of refugees i mean it's completely different than the sixty's you know the first couple years were you know paid. once the crew six are true but this time

this is a kid emissions artistry it's autres so this is the brain of turkey coming to germany. one of them is lucky for our kids a sociologist the tea for signed a petition that called for peace in turkey is kurdish region and it got her fired from her university job. she and i met at a demonstration in support of university lecturers who'd been arrested and. now the two of us are meeting again in germany. latif arrived in december i was there when she met jan it was an emotional moment.

how are you. and you. better now that you are here. you had a meeting today yes we did how many questions. could create about forty and some people could make it is in their mind bill i would have jobs at universities. had them home and just about all of them but some came here on a tourist visa and they're having serious problems with the immigration authorities . she should but they're ok. i don't know any. but it'll be even more difficult for those who want to come now they're not allowed to leave the country she thought it would be hard juggling i have a german authorities for sure purgative no problem or that these people can't leave turkey but you got out. i did it it was

a real adventure. why did i choose germany in fact it was germany that chose me while i was in prison i wrote a book and it was later published in germany in the weekly german paper to tide hired me to write a column writers associations offered me fellowships i want to wards and was invited to speak to distinguished audiences about the situation and sharkey. in the one nine hundred thirty s. and korea welcomed german jewish intellectuals who had fled but nasser is now in berlin can return the favor. since the one nine hundred sixty years large numbers of troops have emigrated to germany the majority of them now support the one.

like me many people in germany are concerned about the way the turkish government has cracked down on its opponents. for example denice eugen turkey correspondent for the newspaper the event has been held without charge in jail for months. i notice that john is still a little nervous here in germany. he hesitates when i ask him why he doesn't use taxi cabs after many discussions with the drugs the drivers decided to take or taxis and. driving is better for me. i decided to get a car. too i was so. much more secure . but when taxis aren't safe i can't believe that so i talked to

a few taxi drivers. i did i wouldn't let chandon door into my cab. and shamus their failure is a traitor was feared of gender denies a traitor for me. finish and they're going to talk well if he's innocent what's he doing in germany he's guilty only someone up there why did he leave and after the release of patriot he should stay in turkey and if i didn't go and why did he come to germany because he's been persecuted by little forethought. many in germany's turkish community believe what they see and hear in the state controlled turkish media which claims that chandan dar is not an objective journalist but a dangerous enemy of the state. john has put together an online portal this allows turks living in exile to present critical reports about the situation in turkey. i set up those portal and soon as i

got to germany it's called. we are free. but. we are in solidarity. with the stick we were i was a bit concerned that there are many journalists in jail so how can we say that we are free. but in their words they hope you know that we are still they can stop us. since john will be arrested if he travels to turkey he and i decided i would go and do research for him there. i applied for a journalist visa if i went to turkey without one i could end up in jail. three or thirty spent months reviewing my application and didn't reply. they seemed to be stalling. then we decided to work with some turkish colleagues they shot this video in ankara for us we're not going to identify these

people because they could be arrested. there are now more reporters in jail in turkey than in any other country. from germany we arrange for our turkish crew to meet with john's colleague at him go to trial against the two of them is still under way in turkey. adam girl and i were colleagues and share the same fate in the course of our reporting. we posted a video showing turkish intelligence officers sending weapons and ammunition to islamist rebels who were fighting the our side regime in syria. adams crime was that he published these allegations the turkish government says that the trucks contained humanitarian aid not weapons and president had one made a very public threat. of it was

a liberal or your point the journalist who published this story will pay a high price. and we did pay we quarter at one committing a crime and were arrested the toaster's in jail for allegedly revealing state secrets adam and i were put in solitary confinement sounds right next to each other . but the constitutional court ruled that we had done nothing wrong and ordered our release but i had one doesn't catch. a moment couple of big i don't accept the court's ruling. and i don't respect it as. he went after my newspaper from her yet early one. morning while i was out of the country ten journalists were arrested. six. of them finally how are you you know it's good the thing you did you did and

our colleagues in jail. they're doing fine they're optimistic but now the authorities are using handcuffs we've never seen that before. where the way. to move your lay our. the situation in the prisons is a lot different now than it used to be hostile you know that each yeah even on the prison grounds. because i'm clear that's how they treat our colleagues. there it's happened to some of them. that's all. very it is keeping track of the days that our colleagues have spent in jail and one hundred fifty other journalists have been imprisoned just for telling the truth most newspapers toe the government line. they've been told to portray arson as terrorists. is headline says terrorists in germany support all of turkey as an

enemy. to kill. there were always different factions within the turkish media. there were those who supported the government and those who opposed it. i watch but we've never seen a case where journalists would be arrested for expressing political opinions. mislay question but now some journalists are even calling for some of our colleagues to be killed is it that you. would have a shame to rush. this is seven scott the wife of my friend mossad can't go we used to enjoy meals together now we share our paying. seven she's on her way to visit my son in prison. as one of

turkey's best known caricaturists uses his arm to defend his country. the caption says human rights will light our way. get rid of the courts. get rid of the parliament and i can certainly rule wants left. not with these downside is it simply ridiculous you know moral person would allow this they charge me and sent me to jail for drawing cartoons for the other. seven she's allowed to visit her husband once a week when they can talk by phone for an hour separated by a glass panel all turkish colleagues have been accompanying her and we asked them whether our media coverage had had any effect on mossad cuts trial or on prison

visiting hours seven she says conditions in the prison have become a lot wes. they have a courtyard that's twenty metres square last week i saw something that made me sad . in the court. the prisoners used to be able to see the sky but now they've covered the yard. it was the only place where the prisoners could feel at least a little free and now it's gone. that made me very sad. is that. the prison is located in the city of saline fifty about sixty kilometers west of istanbul the closer you get the more police you see we're not allowed to film here. this is the first time john has seen the video footage taken by all turkish t.v. . this is my second that gross sneery during our visit there was

a ration there can you imagine the mean people allowed to come there and make the most rationing over the. city. was. was was. you know you're not allowed to go there. it's unbelievable. your friends were thinking they're your friends and colleagues were in there and then there was a new. really touching and can you imagine that my lawyer you know coming there to visit me and now they're in with the. three of them and the other will to me insignia three of them well.

some say there are now more intellectuals in this prison than anywhere else in turkey it will be india earlier that you know. yesterday was especially difficult valentine's day is three days away it'll be the first time in years that we've spent that day of heart. on the prison phone so wish me a happy valentine's day. it was very touching. and i'll never forget it. i'm on my way to visit a friend who came to berlin before i got here he's a doctor and film director he publicly diagnosed president tatooine as having a narcissistic personality disorder he was charged with libel so he got on a plane and flew to. try. to shake off the plane of the last minute i got to my father's funeral and

then went straight to the airport. when i got on the plane there were still dirt from the grave site on my shoes. we have left behind the graves of our loved ones we've left behind a piece of our sounds and our lives as they once were. a limb is our refuge but it's also our place of exile you can be happy here but also sad you can't be peaceful. but also dangerous. here in berlin mostafa opened a school for actors is making good use of his experience. the school is for young turkish people many of them dream of finding work in turkish television. while john watches his friend at work i try to interview some of the turkish students but they don't feel like talking they'd found out that we were coming and debated whether they should talk to us some said that if they appeared in the same

reporters john it could hurt their careers. they want to. and somebody says that he or she was in the course of job. once again carter. from the protect. these kinds of things together is of. mostar is working on a new project. it's a film about the twenty first taksim gazey park protests in istanbul showing how the turkish people rose up against repression. is the summer girls little. break you may be and how they had their hopes dashed.

sooner or starve i was among those who tended to the wounded. only to do. good work or. we didn't leave our country our country left us. even. the book it's not a good feeling can do just the day i did. you work for your country for half a century. you fight for a better society and a better world. hurry reveals and then this country that you've worked so hard for journalists and tosses you around the city at the center.

we're on our way to visit a man whose life is in danger not only in turkey but also here in germany where he now lives in exile. or hunch and sire was a mayor in turkey's kurdish region he believes he could be killed by islamic state supporters or by agents of the turkish secret police. she has defended the rights of turkey's kurdish minority. that's prompted threats from turkish nationalists here in germany. he never leaves his home without a bodyguard. i don't go out very often and when i do it's only for half an hour or an hour but i'm happy to be able to do that. so. it.

has been living in germany since twenty fifteen i want to find out what the situation was like in turkey before he left. turkey my homeland has been wracked by p k k terrorist attacks for thirty five years but p.k. demands autonomy for turkey's kurds last year forty four people were killed in an attack in istanbul in twenty thirteen the government and the p.k. had agreed on a ceasefire. but hopes for a peaceful settlement were shattered in twenty fifteen after a suicide attack in the kurdish region. the assailant was said to be a member of islamic state but the p.k. k. blamed the turkish government the violence continued. the p.k. call for self-government in kurdish senses p k k fighters took up positions on the

streets of the turkish government viewed all this as a declaration of war. and the kurdish cities that had declared autonomy were raised to the ground this video was shot by a turkish soldier government troops fired at civilians who were transporting the wounded under a white flag that people who were filming these events. this video was never shown on turkish state t.v. . or hunch ansal also treated the wounded even though he's a dentist by profession. that's what we call the ambulances sometimes they showed up or sometimes not a good listener that there was a news blackout at the time you thought what was it really like that says then you all blow through the battle you call an ambulance and they say we're not coming

over they told us to bring the wounded to them well how do you do that if. people were bleeding out so you pick them up. and then you'd be arrested for trying to help. you through. one thousand five hundred people were killed over three months in thirty cities and towns half a million people were forced to leave their homes. was one of them he was suspended from his job as mayor and was charged with supporting a terrorist organization leading members of his political party the h.t.t.p. were arrested. in decided that he had to leave the country there's no armed conflict here obviously but chancellor is terribly lonely he left his wife and children behind in

turkey. other turks in germany have been persecuted for speaking out. we need latifa accuser get a sociologist who's now living in frankfurt in turkey she supported efforts to end the fighting between the kurds and the government. that prompted a sharp attack from the president at the one. i'm a bot. these fake intellectuals' accuse the government of carrying out a massacre there are no numbers are. you intellectuals' are not educated you are evil people and these. are the ones remarks had serious consequences for that she felt. she shows me some social media comments from the same day at the time she was working at a university in the town of dujail suddenly she was targeted by critics.

coverage of ed once comments spread like wildfire that there are no words that make that a regional t.v. station portrayed latif as a piece of cake a terrorist. but you know what's particularly appalling is that this sociologist who works at the university and dues just has actually put her name on a petition. latifa lives in this dormitory room in frankfurt she feels safe here but she had to leave her home in turkey and quit her job she no longer has contact with her students and colleagues people she

really liked it all disappeared in just two days. well on wednesday evening my friend said it was too dangerous for me to stay and do . two things they didn't want me to leave on the regional bus. or that they sized up the situation and then drove me to the nearby province of is met by. their i took a bus to istanbul. the next morning i found out that the authorities had issued a warrant for my arrest they searched my home and my office at the university they claimed that i disappeared even though they could have easily reached me by phone so they issued a warrant and then they passed the story along to the press. which. latifa wasn't arrested but she was banned from working and from leaving the country later

she secretly made her way to frankfurt she describes the situation of the university before she left us that some of my colleagues didn't actually speak out against me but they just sort of disappeared from my life and i was pretty upset about that. people on social media took me off their list of friends. people who had phoned me every day to chat he just stopped calling that really hurt. all. just because you all until i want to turn the authorities campaign against us had created an atmosphere of fear among my colleagues that they were afraid to talk to me or speak up you tell that it's a it's only vehicle and i think that this is the main reason why we're in the situation we are now a little sis in the song no use the. gucci

university in frankfurt has awarded le t. for a two year grant. it's a political gesture to show that germany will support exiles who've been oppressed by all thora tarion regimes. but turkey says the german government is harboring terrorists. turkey's domestic political troubles are now playing out in germany. in february twenty seventh turks in the western german city of omaha was an campaigned in favor of a referendum that would give president head one more executive powers the turkish prime minister attended a big rally there john didn't go because of the charges against him in turkey german reporters weren't exactly welcome there either. but there are means freedom everyone means freedom. and you're talking armisen that's at the top

of what we've heard several certainly noticed that some people are criticizing the turkish government without any justification all. lloyd we've invested so much in germany some of us have lived here for decades we pay taxes and contribute to this country's prosperity we feel betrayed and sliced into god's rest was an officer and i don't know why but since the one nine hundred eighty s. the german media have betrayed turkish organizations in germany the turkish people and the turkey. nation in the negative might actually really negative charges. most of the people at the rally believe everyone is doing a great job some told me that when they went back home to visit they found that the government had improved the health care system and built new roads. there are about three million turks in germany but a larger percentage of them vote for everyone's political party than to turks in turkey and that's been the case for years. that's why john took the referendum

campaign very seriously. some people who were opposed to the referendum held rallies higher means no turkish but there were just a few dozen people at this one some demonstrations were even cancelled due to low turnout. these groups were supported by private funding while the preferential groups were backed by president ed one's political party. not many people here are willing to criticize the government on camera. but we found a few when this private club of those who live on the little. fire you all know sri your country i don't want to dictatorship i live well here. full of the finances authority insist on t.v. criticizing turkey we could get into trouble this is it's not good. in the end it's

not so it's a dictatorship now. but everybody who went to turkey we'd probably be arrested you know. it's difficult for john to find supporters in germany most turkish reporters don't want to work with him in the beginning i was dreaming of i was thinking of that i mean there are two thousand three thousand who took his journeys into. and there would be no problem to find out people to work with it but now i understand that it's not that easy because it's dangerous for them when they they feel threatened by the government because of that and i can understand that but it is of course in the beginning it was a bit disappointing for me. in january twenty seventeen turkish journalist heikal baghdad moved to berlin to work with chen he left his wife and children back

in turkey. heiko has visited delhi and often. so you will not done to see if you were me this was just another trip. i'll do some work here and then go back home. that's what i plan to do religiously she rejects i think that things in turkey will calm down soon and i can go back and live in peace . but i didn't book a return flight this time i feel strange as. i go tells me that he is concerned about his family will be all sorry to take away his wife's passport as they did with chinese wife. heiko bada that he used to have his own t.v. show and he was often a guest on talk programs but not anymore the show was cancelled he's half armenian and half greek an opposition journalist puts him high on the list of people whom

the turkish authorities consider dangerous. there are more and more friends against him. it is less hard to plan the even people i knew personally started making threats young people who live near me. watch them grow up to be threatened by young people it was really depressing. hikers family are now on their way to berlin is looking forward to their arrival. and the. usual use it. took me to check this band the better when they get here look for exams if you don't have one i can start looking around for an apartment and take care of all the other stuff because the end of organising is to have them here all of it always taking it which

is such that the younger ones ok i'll talk to the older one was in there but he understands. i think he'll understand. i'll explain that we'll just have to make the best of things and most of the times that would and what about school. start working on any of them. imagine that you wake up one morning and everything that you had is gone you know living in a foreign country where you don't speak the language that's what we've been forced to do we are far away from our homeland and our loved ones we have to live with threats we try to overcome our anger and our sorrow with our work. heiko was a welcome addition to our team we got started right away. none match what has been one of my dismay i came here to take a break and have a normal life just going that's what i ended up working for chandu and are the most

wanted man in turkey or. maybe i did it because i'm a fighter but i haven't been able to relax much so far in the middle. john shows me the threats that have been posted on social media. he says he pays little attention to them. how do you react when someone points a gun at you you have two options you can either be afraid of everything or you can be afraid of nothing. i haven't been afraid of anything since someone tried to shoot me outside the

courthouse in istanbul mom line t.v. . at the official opening of the old you could use internet platform earlier this year security was very tight. but. i hope this platform will give us the opportunity to do our profession freely. but there were no police on hand just a few days later when a pro-government turkish journalist tried to break into john's office for an interview. we came to berlin to meet with chandan dar but he didn't want to talk to us either by phone or email. and this is all we know.

it's fifteen minutes to the city center it was called place. as you know only the. third leg of the implication was that your head. saw no protection there own so if something like. great has happened to our. office who will be the responsible. low in. this. he's going to be. mrs john. were there for. a while to do stupid shit although i think. we were told that. this really goes to show that. despite the danger john

will appear in public to support denise eugen the german turkish journalist now in jail in turkey the people in these cars are demanding his release john feels that he must speak out on you just behalf and that those who oppose president ad one should stick together in germany and in turkey. there was a. campaign during our prison. in january i guess he came to live it the protests are worthless and stayed there for a couple of hours. and the other day there was news about him. then. the protesters there are in germany. more and more journalists in turkey are being jailed more people are being put on trial and we will continue to write about being sent to speak out to people in our homeland because so many that cannot. on the evening of the referendum now the one

appeared on the balcony of his palace and he looked more worried than we did on april sixteenth nearly half the voters said no to giving him more power despite the crackdown on his opponents and all the manipulation. of that point we started to smile. does john consider the referendum result a victory for the opposition i feel victorious really i mean. at least we saw that the people is behind us i mean we got together with them. which is. the result was indeed close but the opposition still lost. many turks in germany celebrated the result. president add one won by

a wider margin here than he did in turkey. i did some research on the german results only half of the turkish voters registered in germany took part in the referendum but four hundred thousand voted yes and by so doing we can democracy in turkey. everyone intended to divide the turkish german community and to intimidate referendum opponents and that's just what he did. there's a huge divide actually uses two wingers and you're here either for or against conscripts lago there's no in between missions neither side wants to have anything to do with the other kind. i'm quite concerned by the fact that many turkish germans feel closer to president ed one than they do to chancellor america how do we get people to take democracy and freedom of speech more seriously.

that's a decisive issue for germany for turkey for europe for all of us the turkish exiles aren't going to win this fight by themselves. if european people nature t. care about that lot is going on in turkey. they will increase their war there is going to be less so much more if it g.'s inserts here and also turkish people will become refugees soon. people who are in neutral need to act against these. latifa mustapha heiko me and beyond us are exiles from a country where democracy is dying. again in a. was.

in. the. smooth. oh. you're max heights. love the last place. because we can never get enough last. lifestyle. the highlights the odds cut double.

play the games. the scars. the pain still tangible. suffering for good. for city edge but. they have survived do they also have a future. i really understand people who say they do want to stay here. but i also admire people who want to stay here and who decided to create something . new beginning in peace time who are the people making it possible what needs to happen if tolerance and reconciliation are to stand a chance to get. out of darkness cities after war. starting march tenth on d w.

the audience pledge again. this is deja news line from. people and it's the romney against racism marchers turn exit around the country a week after a neo nazi sympathizer opened fire on african migrants the kalyan gear up for elections in which migration is becoming a teen topic. also coming up syrian forces shoot down an israeli fighter jet targeting the rainy inside the israel prime minister of the has to strike back hard against in a rainy and military presence in the country store.