Babacan criticized the British television documentary about Turkish orphanages saying it could harm the welfare of the children involved. “The way in which the disguised Duchess of York was used to shoot scenes with a hidden camera ... was done without taking into consideration the adverse effects of such unprepared visits on the intellectual and emotional development of these children,” Babacan said. “These children are sick; these children are mentally disabled,” Babacan said following talks with Miliband. “Doing such kind of a visit, in a secretive way, with a hidden camera and in disguise ... is not the proper way.”
The footage was aired on ITV1’s “Tonight” program on Thursday evening as part of a documentary titled “Duchess and Daughters: Their Secret Mission,” which covers the trip of ITN correspondent Chris Rogers and Ferguson and her two teenage daughters to state-run institutions in Turkey and Romania. Babacan called on the British media to visit Turkish facilities that care for orphans and the disabled in order to observe positive improvements at these facilities.

A Turkish journalist asked Miliband about his probable reaction if a foreign journalist recorded secret footage at his country’s institutions. “I don’t want to particularly talk on this issue, but laws and rules in this country explain everything. We also witnessed a lot of child abuse incidents in our country until recently. This can happen anywhere. What is important here is that Babacan has said that their institutions are open to everybody, while inviting these television channels to Turkey,” Miliband said. Two months ago, Ferguson paid an undercover visit to the Saray Rehabilitation Center in Ankara and İstanbul’s Zeytinburnu Center for the Care of Disabled Children. The duchess was accompanied by Rogers and, unbeknownst to the staff at the two centers, the two were secretly filming for a television documentary on state-run institutions that care for children. Rogers described what they saw as “profoundly shocking,” and the conditions at the two facilities were detailed in the correspondent’s report.

The British foreign secretary, meanwhile, voiced his country’s support for Turkey’s European Union membership, urging Ankara for a continuation of EU reforms. Following the press conference, Babacan and Miliband departed for Newcastle City for a private meeting.

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