Send a Letter: Confiscated Businesses

PROPERTY RIGHTS UNDER THREAT IN TURKEY

Property rights in Turkey are unfortunately no longer protected. Since 2015 and mainly after the failed coup attempt in 2016, the Erdogan government is showing disregard to the rights of its dissidents. The followers of the Gulen Movement, specifically the businesspeople who supported the movement and many opponents of the Erdogan government have become the victim of this merciless purge.

The Erdogan government published the number of confiscated businesses. Muhiddin Gülal, the head of Savings Deposits Insurance Fund (TMSF), a government organization that operates the confiscated companies, told in July 2018 that, at the time, 937 companies had been managed by trustees, reaching TL 19.4 billion (USD 3.3 billion) in equity and TL 50 billion (USD 8.5 billion) in assets. The numbers Gülal mentioned do not even include the assets of 127 individuals, 19 unions, 15 private universities, 49 hospitals, 174 media outlets, 1,419 foundations, and another 2,271 education companies confiscated by the government. The total value of all assets confiscated is estimated to be about TL 100 billion (USD 17 billion). Moreover, if we calculate this amount per the exchange rates of the confiscation date, the total number will be close to USD 40 billion.

Confiscated businesses illustrates the violation of the fundamental human right of private property in Turkey. There is no longer liberal economic politics in Turkey, rather they are despotic and coercive in nature, and no government opponent is economically safe. We want the Turkish government to change its seizure policies and reinstitute the property rights all over the country and follow the Rule of Law.

You can download the sample letter and implement your own story of confiscated businesses or seized properties

https://silencedturkey.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Letter_to_officials_erdogans_long_arm_in_afghanistan.pdf

TRANSLATION & LAWYER

AST volunteers will help you in your local area to translate your story to English. If you could not find anyone to translate your story send your story to [email protected]. we will translate and send it back to you to be signed and send to relevant contacts. If you want to get legal advice pls send an email to [email protected] to be contacted with a legal consultant till January 1st.

SEND AN EMAIL OR MAIL

We urge the victims of confiscated businesses or seized properties to take action. Express your views or send attached statement to following addresses:

United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner

The Honorable Ms. Michelle Bachelet Jeria/High Commissioner
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms while countering terrorism

Ms. Fionnuala D.Ni Aolain

[email protected]
[email protected]

The European Parliament Human Rights Committee

Per Antonio Panzeri/Chair
Barbara Lochbihler/Vice-Chair
Francisco Assis/Member
Amjad Bashir/Member
Klaus Buchner/Member
Wajid Khan/member
Kati Piri/Substitute
Judith Sargentini/Substitute

[email protected]

The European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs

David McAllister/Chair
Javier Couso Permuy/Vice-Chair
Nikos Androulakis/Member
Michele Alliot Marie/Member
Petras Austrevicius/Member
Johannes Cornelis van Baalen/Member
Mario Borghezio/Member
Aymeric Chauprade/Member

[email protected]

The European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Roberto Gualtieri/Chair
Peter Simon/Vice-Chair
Kay Swinburne, Vice-Chair
Hugues Bayet/Member
David Coburn/Member
Thierry Cornillet/Member
Jonas Fernandez/Member
Sven Giegold/Member

[email protected]

The European Parliament Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

Jerzy Buzek/Chair
Patrizia Toia/Vice-Chair
Jaromir Kohlicek/Vice-Chair
Morten Helveg Petersen/Vice-Chair
Bendt Bendtsen/Member
Xabier Benito Ziluaga/member
Jakob Dalunde/Member
Adam Gierek/Member

[email protected]

European Court of Human Rights Judges of the Court

Guido Raimond
Angelika Nußberger
Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos
Ganna Yudkivska
Robert Spano

EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL OF EUROPE
67075 STRASBOURG CEDEX FRANCE
Tel: + 33 (0)3 88 41 20 18
Fax: + 33 (0)3 88 41 27 30

Parliamentary Assembly Council of Europe

Türki̇ye konusunda çali̇şan raportör üyeler:

– Ingebjørg Godskesen (Norway, CE) @IngAmGod
– Marianne Mikko (Estonia, SOC) @mariannemikko

Co-rapporteurs of the the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for the monitoring of Turkey:

– Marianne Mikko (Estonia, SOC) @mariannemikko
– Nigel Evans (United Kingdom, EC) @nigelmp
– Bernd Fabritius (Germany, EPP/ CD) @BerndFabritius (rapporteur on ‘new threats to the rule of law in Council of Europe member States – selected examples’
– Raphael Comte (Switzerland, ALDE) @RaphaelComteCE (rapporteur on ‘state of emergency: proportionality issues concerning derogations under Article 15 of the European Convention on Human Rights’)

Head of the Secretariat/ Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly

Schirmer Guenter
[email protected]

KATI PIRI

[email protected]

President of German Bar Association

Raun Ulrich Schellenberg (advocated against ECtHR’s decision)
Kurfürstendamm 182 10707 Berlin

​Correspondence to:

​German Lawyers Association
Littenstraße 11, 10179 Berlin
Phone : +49 (30) 726152-140
Fax : +49 (30) 726152-192
[email protected]

International Monetary Fund

Srikant Seshadri / Resident representative for Turkey
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +903 12 446 5007
Fax: +903 12 446 5266

World Bank

Johannes Zutt / Country Director for Turkey, Europe and Central Asia
Tel : +(880-2) 8159001
[email protected]

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

https://www.hrw.org/contact-us

HUMAN RIGHTS FOUNDATION

Thor Halvorssen/President
[email protected]
[email protected]

Human Rights Without Frontiers
[email protected]
Human Rights and Democracy Network
[email protected]
European Association for the Defense of Human Rights
[email protected]
Platform of European Social NGO’s
[email protected]
European Citizen Action Service (ECAS)
[email protected]
OSCE-Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
[email protected]

European Commission

[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

Credit rating Agencies

MOODY’S
[email protected]

STANDART & POOR’S
[email protected]

FITCH RATINGS
[email protected]
[email protected]

Mixed

The Honorable Thorbjørn Jagland
Secretary General of the Council of Europe Council of Europe
​Avenue de l’Europe F-67075
​Strasbourg Cedex, France
Email: [email protected]

The Honorable Nils Muižnieks
Commissioner for Human Rights Council of Europe
​Avenue de l’Europe F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France
twitter:@CommissionerHR

Honorable Christos Giakoumopoulos
Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law Council of Europe
Avenue de l’Europe F-67075 ​Strasbourg Cedex, France
Email: [email protected]

Martin Schulz
President of European Parliament
twitter:EP_President
EP contact: https://www.secure.europarl.europa.eu/atyourservice/en/askEP.html
Address:European Parliament Bât. Altiero Spinelli ​60 rue Wiertz / Wiertzstraat 60 B-1047 – Bruxelles/Brussels Belgium Phone: +32(0)2 28 42111
Fax: +32(0)2 28 46974

Donald Tusk
President of the European Council
twitter:@eucopresident
Send e-mail to President: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/

Jean-Claude Juncker
President of the EU Commission
twitter:@junckerEU
e-mail to EC: http://europa.eu/contact/write-to-us/index_en.htm

Frederica Mogherini
High Representative of the EU for foreign affairs and Security Policy-Vice President of the EU Commission
twitter:@FedericaMog

NEWS & ARTICLES

Assets worth $11bn seized in Turkey crackdown
https://www.ft.com/content/fed595d0-631e-11e7-8814-0ac7eb84e5f1

Turkish Businesses Snagged In Government’s Post-Coup Crackdown
https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/08/03/541360939/turkish-businesses-snagged-in-governments-post-coup-crackdown

Turkish business suffers under Erdogan’s post-coup Gulen purge
https://www.cnbc.com/2016/11/07/turkish-business-suffers-under-erdogans-post-coup-gulen-pur
ge.html

Turkey seized 879 companies since failed coup, worth 40.3 bln lira -state fund
https://www.reuters.com/article/turkey-security-companies-idUSI7N1II00J

Turkey Sees Foes at Work in Gold Mines, Cafes and ‘Smurf Village’
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/22/business/turkey-akin-ipek-fethullah-gulen-recep-tayyip-erd
ogan.html

http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/turkish-economy-heading-toward-crisis-under-erdo
gan-a-1141363.html

Turkey Corruption Report
https://www.business-anti-corruption.com/country-profiles/turkey/

https://www.economist.com/europe/2017/02/02/turkeys-purges-are-hitting-its-business-class
/

Turkey confiscates some 50 religious properties from Christian minority
https://www.foxnews.com/us/turkey-confiscates-some-50-religious-properties-from-christian-min
ority

VIDEO

Government seizes businesses in Turkey

https://www.dw.com/en/government-seizes-businesses-in-turkey/av-37084560