The participants of the 38th Congress of the International Human Rights Federation (FIDH), which has started on 23 May in Istanbul, organized a procession with the demand to release their colleagues political prisoners Read the rest of this entry »
Posts Tagged ‘Turkey’
Centre for Constitutional Rights calls for action on death of US HRD, Furkan Doğan, in Mavi Marmara incident
May 22, 2013
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The New York based Center for Constitutional Rights called on US President Barack Obama last week to break his three-year silence over Israel’s 2009 killing of 18-year-old US citizen Furkan Doğan during its siege on the Gaza-bound Mavi Marmara ship in international waters.
The CCR states in its 16 May 2013 letter (emphasis theirs): Read the rest of this entry »
PEN Prize to Honor Jailed Turkish Translator Ayşe Berktay
May 21, 2013
(Ayşe Berktay in Bakırköy Women’s Prison – Photo courtesy Ali Berktay)
On 15 April 2013 PEN American Center named Ayşe Berktay, a translator, writer, and activist in Turkey, as the recipient of its 2013 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award. Berktay, a leading advocate for peace, women’s rights, and Kurdish rights in Turkey, was arrested on October 3, 2011, and is currently being tried for “membership in an illegal organization” for her pro-Kurdish cultural advocacy. One of at least 130 writers currently in prison or on trial in Turkey, many on false terrorism-related charges, she could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted. Read the rest of this entry »
NGOs and media report that Turkey rounds up Human Rights Defenders
January 21, 2013The Voice of America echoes reports by HRW and Freedom House amongst others that the security forces in Turkey have detained more than a dozen lawyers as part of a nationwide sweep against illegal leftist groups……With many of the detained lawyers being well-known human rights defenders, several human rights groups around the world have voiced alarm. Emma Sinclair Webb, who is with U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, said, “Its very concerning to find lawyers the targets of police operations at four oclock in the morning, having their doors broken down. These lawyers are all known for their activities in defense of human rights, for pursuing police violence cases. ….The Turkish government has accused the lawyers of transferring instructions from the groups imprisoned leaders to militants.
Seven of the detained lawyers belong to the Progressive Lawyers Association, which last year launched a telephone hot line for people to report police abuse. In a statement, the lawyers group condemned the detentions, calling them an attack against people and institutions that oppose the government and struggle for democracy and freedom. The arrests also included five members of a popular left-wing folk music group. ….The government claims none of them are in jail for their pursuits of journalist activities. In a report this week, the watchdog group Freedom House categorized Turkey as only a partially free country in its “Freedom in the World Report,” due to what it described as a serious decline in civil liberties and political rights.
Every Turk is born with rights, including the right to freedom of expression
December 10, 2012
A Turkish court has acquitted four men on trial for their participation in a protest in support of a conscientious objector.
On Thursday 7 December 2012 the court in the north-western city of Eskişehir cleared human rights defender Halil Savda and three others of the charge of “alienating the public from military service”, a criminal offence under Turkey’s Penal Code. The case against them began in 2011 after they protested outside the hearing of fellow conscientious objector Enver Aydemir a year earlier in what became known as the “everyone is born a baby” case – a twist on the Turkish military slogan “every Turk is born a soldier”. In response John Dalhuisen, Director of Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia Programme said: “This acquittal should prove that every Turk is born with rights, including the right to freedom of expression”.
In acquitting the defendants, the court ruled that their protest and slogans were protected under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and the Turkish Constitution, because they did not contain or incite violence, and that a democratic society must allow freedom of expression even if it shocks and disturbs. However, Savda has another similar conviction that is currently pending at the Supreme Court of Appeals.
Over the last few years, Amnesty International has been campaigning for the Turkish authorities to end their prosecution of Savda and others facing convictions under Article 318 of the Penal Code – which criminalizes “alienating the public from military service”.
On-Line Video contest also in Turkey
November 28, 2012On 23 November I referred to the video contest on human rights in Armenia and wondered where the others were. Here is one more, in Turkey as reported by BIANET on 27 November:
With its slogan “Make a film. Be Viral. Create a Change”, Human Rights Online Video Contest selected five young directors who recorded stories about how they see and interpret human rights issues in the environment. Finalists were selected by a jury including Ece Temelkuran, Melek Özman and Fatih Keskin.
The winner video will be selected following a public voting ending on December 3. Anyone can vote for the contest through http://www.youtube.com/humanrightsturkey. The delegation also urged social media users to share the video through Twitter and Facebook. The winner–the most viral video on social media–will be announced on the delegation website.
A closing ceremony will be held in Ankara to award the winner on December 12.
FIDH MEMBERS IN DETENTION OR HARASSED FOR THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS WORK
November 21, 2012In various parts of the world human rights defenders brave legal harassment, arbitrary detention, ill treatment, torture and sometimes death, in seeking to secure freedom and dignity for all. In challenging serious abuses of State power, many such defenders find themselves behind bars;
FIDH works endlessly to secure the release of these (and other) human rights defenders, mainly through the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders – its joint programme with OMCT.A recent summing up by FIDH of their (local affiliate) in Bahrain, Belarus, Iran, Turkey and Uzbekistan makes sobering reading:
Check out the steps that led to their detention:
Check out the steps that led to their detention:
- In BAHRAIN :Nabeel Rajab, FIDH Deputy Secretary General and President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR)
Abdulhadi AlKhawaja, former President of BCHR
The Bahrain Centre or Human Rights is one the 2012 nominees of the Martin Ennals Award.
- In BELARUS :Ales Bialiatski, President of the Viasna Human Rights Centre and FIDH Vice President
Since his election in 1994, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, has installed an authoritarian regime that represses freedom of expression, assembly and association. The human rights situation in Belarus markedly deteriorated on 19 December 2010 when riot police brutally dispersed demonstrators protesting against the unfair handling of the presidential election. This event marked the beginning of an unprecedented wave of repression, which continues to this day. Prominent human rights defender, Ales Bialiatski was arrested in Minsk on 4 August 2011 and sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison on trumped up tax evasion charges. He remains in prison to this day.
- In IRAN :Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, founding member of Defenders of Human Rights Centre (DHRC) and human rights lawyer
Abdolfattah Soltani, founding member of DHRC and human rights lawyer
Mohammad Seifzadeh, member of the DHRC and human rights lawyer
Nasrin Sotoudeh, member of DHRC and prominent human rights lawyer known for defending juveniles facing death penalty, prisoners of conscience, human rights activists and child victims of abuse; she is lso a 2012 MEA nominee
- In TURKEY :Muharrem Erbey, IHD Vice Chairperson and former Chairperson of Diyarbakır branch
Arslan Özdemir, Executive, IHD Diyarbakır branch
Şerif Süren, Executive, IHD Aydın branch
Orhan Çiçek, Executive, IHD Aydın branch
Reşit Teymur, Executive, IHD Siirt branch
Abdulkadir Çurğatay, Executive, IHD Mardin branch
Veysi Parıltı, Executive, IHD Mardin branch
Şaziye Önder, representative IHD Doğubeyazıt (Ağrı)
Mensur Işık, former Chairperson, IHD Muş branch
Hikmet Tapancı, Executive, IHD Malatya branch
Ali Tanrıverdi, Chairperson IHD Mersin branch
Osman İşçi, IHD General Headquarters (Ankara) former worker and member of IHD
Hanim Koçygit, Executive, IHD Sakarya branch
Bekir Gürbüz, former Chairperson, IHD Adıyaman branch
FIDH notes in this respect: Despite Turkey’s considerable human rights progress since 2000, those expressing ideas on “sensitive” human rights related issues continue to be targeted and criminalised by the public authorities. So-called “sensitive” questions include the promotion of alternative identities to the Turkish mainstream (e.g. asserting the rights of ethnic and religious minorities, especially Kurds, as well as the rights of sexual minorities). It also encompasses any criticism of the State and its institutions, including institutional functioning, judicial independence, and impunity for human rights violations. Members of NGOs, lawyers, trade unionists, journalists, intellectuals, academics, conscientious objectors, the families of victims of serious human rights violations, and others have been targeted by State policies that consider their expression of their views to be a threat. Fourteen members of the Human Rights Association (IHD), a Turkish FIDH member organisation, are currently being held in preventive detention under an anti-terrorism law that criminalises legitimate expression of opinion.
- In UZBEKISTAN :Zafar Rakhimov, member of the Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan (HRSU) Kashkadarya regional branch
Nasim Isakov, member of the HRSU Djizak regional branch
Yuldosh Rasulov, member of the HRSU Kashkadarya regional branch
Azam Formonov, Head of the Sirdarya regional branch of the HRSU
Gaybullo Jalilov, member of the HRSU Karshi regional branch
Uzbekistan has the highest number of human rights defenders serving lengthy prison sentences in Eastern Europe/Central Asia. These sentences are usually served in penal colonies where the regime is extremely strict. Harsh conditions and ill treatment have caused the health of incarcerated defenders to deteriorate quickly. These inhumane and degrading conditions are currently the reality of several members of FIDH member organisation, the Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan.
2012 OSCE Human Dimension meeting gets information on HRD problems
September 27, 2012Organisation for the Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has an active human rights defenders programme that is often overlooked. The statement below illustrates the kind of cases that continue to plague parts of Europe.
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of their joint programme, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, submitted to the OSCE information on the threats and obstacles faced by human rights defenders in OSCE Participating States.
In 2011 and 2012, human rights defenders in Eastern Europe and Central Asia continued to operate in a difficult, and sometimes hostile environment. The lack of accountability and respect for the rule of law remained acute, particularly in Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Uzbekistan. For the full text go to:
Turkey’s Government ignores HRDs advice for National Human Rights Institution
June 19, 2012Bianet reports as follows: Human rights organizations decried the new draft law on the Turkish Human Rights Institution (TIHK) during a press meeting at the headquarters of the Human Rights Association (IHD) on June 14.
Human rights organizations held a press meeting at 11:00 on June 14 at the general headquarters of the Human Rights Association (IHD) in relation to the Human Rights Commission’s decision to pass the new draft law on the Turkish Human Rights institution (TIHK) to Parliament without any changes.
The organizations who participated in the meeting are nonplussed in face of the fact that the commission sent the draft law, whose preparation had been underway since 2004, to Parliament without any alterations, Metin Bakkalcı said while reading the press release on behalf of the participants.
The draft law is left null and void in its current form, he said and made number of tough comments (see article in full for details) to conclude that National Human rights Institutions ought to be autonomous from state institutions and political power in accordance with the spirit and essence of the Paris principles.
via: Government’s Soliloquy on the Human Rights Institution – Bianet.
Arbitrary arrest and detention of 31 human rights defenders in Turkey
October 4, 2011Several important human rights NGOs, including AI and HRW, have in recent days expressed concern about the situation of human rights defenders in Turkey. I base myself here on the appeal issued on 28 September by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT).
The Observatory has been informed by the reliable Human Rights Association (İnsan Haklari Derneği – İHD) about the arbitrary arrests of 31 members and executives of İHD Şanlıurfa Branch, the Education and Science Workers Trade Union (Egitim-Sen), the Health and Social Service Workers Trade Union (SES) as well as the searches by the police of the houses of the chairpersons and executives of the above mentioned organisations and their offices.
In the morning of September 27, law-enforcement officers raided İHD, Egitim-Sen and SES Şanlıurfa Branch offices as well as the houses of their chairpersons and executives and arrested 31 members of these organisations. The police was in possession of a warrant from the Şanlıurfa Chief Public Prosecution Office mentioning allegations of “propaganda for an illegal organisation” and “participating in activities in line with the action and aims of that organisation” and has denied to release information on the reasons of the raids and arrest, on the basis of legal provisions pertaining to the fight against terrorism.
Among those arrested were İHD Şanlıurfa Branch President Cemal Babaoğlu, İHD executivesMüslüm Kına and Müslüm Çiçek, Eğitim-Sen Branch President Halit Şahin, Eğitim-Sen former Branch President Sıtkı Dehşet and Eğitim-Sen executive Veysi Özbingöl.
The Observatory denounces the continuing policy of arbitrarily arresting human rights defenders in Turkey, and particularly İHD members and members of trade unions, which seems to merely aim at sanctioning their human rights activities. To that extent, the Observatory recalls that other İHD members are in pre-trial detention, notably Mr. Muharrem Erbey, İHD General Vice Chairperson and Chairperson of its Diyarbakir Province branch who had been detained since December 2009, Mr. Arslan Özdemir and Ms. Roza Erdede, İHD members in Diyarbakır, or that others remain in provisional release pending the outcome of criminal trials on alleged terrorism charges.
Accordingly, the Observatory calls upon the Turkish authorities to put an end to the continuing harassment against human rights defenders, including members of İHD, and urges the Turkish authorities.
for more detials and suggested actions you can take, see:
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 