Journalists Union in Ankara held a press conference in front of major media outlets yesterday to denounce the mass firings of reporters. Recently, ATV-Sabah and Haberturk have fired 360 of their employees.

The Union, as reported by DIHA News Agency, has indicated that the firings may be part of a larger government crackdown on political dissent, particularly against reporters who allegedly present the government party in an unfavorable light or reveals human rights violations occurring within Turkey.

Addressing the crowd, Göksel Yýldýrým, representative of the Journalists Union, called on all professionals to unite through the union and fight mass unemployment among the press. He also warned his colleagues that more firings may occur in the near future.

"We need to tell our bosses, 'Enough is enough.' We are fed up with them playing with our jobs, lives and livelihood. We need to unite for the right of the people to receive transparent and honest news. We, too, have rights as workers and citizens in a democratic country. We will not be part of a partisan press," argued Yýldýrým.