To the members of the international press corps in Turkey:
I regret to inform you that Johanna Cornelia Boersma, a freelance reporter for the Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad, was deported this morning. The Communications Directorate had issued a press card for Ms. Boersma, which was valid until January 31, 2019, earlier this month.
Rest assured that Ms. Boersma’s deportation was in no way related to her journalistic activities during her stay in Turkey.
Seeing that this situation might be confusing, I wanted to take a moment of your time today to clarify the circumstances of Ms. Boersma’s sudden departure.
The Turkish authorities have recently received intelligence from the Dutch police that Ms. Boersma had links to a designated terrorist organization and a request for information about her movements in and out of Turkey.
As you know, a number of terrorist groups, including PKK and ISIS, carried out deadly attacks against Turkish citizens in recent years, killing more than 2,000 innocent people. Due to the seriousness of the threat, we work closely with our friends and allies, including the Netherlands, and rely on their insights to identify and neutralize threats against Turkish and European security. Until now, the Turkish authorities, with help from their international partners, have blacklisted tens of thousands of individuals with links to terrorist organizations as part of an ongoing effort to combat extremism.
Sincerely,
Prof. Fahrettin Altun
Communications Director
Presidency of the Republic of Turkey