THE CURRENT SITUATION OF PRISONS
Under the political Islamist Erdoğan regime, which has been ruling Turkey since 2002, the number of prisons reached the highest level in history. With Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) abandoning libertarian discourse and policies and turning to one-man rule in the country, it is striking that prison populations have also increased. The prisons were filled with political prisoners far exceeding their current capacity especially after the failed coup attempt in 2015, with the crackdown carried out against the members of the Gülen movement, an international, voluntary-based education and dialogue community, which the Turkish government designated as a terror organization after the corruption allegations in 2013.
Inconceivable torture as a grave human rights violation in Turkey at Şanlıurfa Counter-Terrorism Branch (TEM): “I put on a condom, now I will rape you”
Another grave human rights violation documented by Sevinç Özarslan with the victim of torture in Turkey. The history teacher, who worked as a teacher in the closed private teaching institution and had 3 children, who did not want his name to be disclosed for security reasons, told about the torture he faced in Şanlıurfa Counter-Terrorism Branch. He was taken to Sanliurfa TEM with his 15-day-old baby, whose heart was born bigger than it should, and his puerperant wife. Moreover, he was subjected to such torture that he still could not take the trauma of what he had been through. The incident that happened was disgusting enough to identify it as subhuman. After they completely cut off contact with his wife and child, they put him in the cell. After being pressured to take advantage of effective regret, the victim, who did not even know the crime that he did, was…
ELDERLY SICK INMATE WITH CORONAVIRUS WAS PUT IN A CELL IN TURKEY’S PRISON
The coronavirus continues to spread rapidly in Turkey’s prisons. As Advocates of Silenced Turkey, we spoke to the relatives of Namık Bingöl, a 57-year-old diabetic with high blood pressure inmate in the Gaziantep H-type closed prison after his COVID-19 test results turned out to be positive. Close family members of Bingöl, incarcerated in Gaziantep Prison for about 4 years, claim that the prison administration did not provide them with accurate information about his status. ‘‘Today (September 10th), I went to see my father. While we were entering the prison, everyone who got there before us was upset saying that the inmates were sick. My father came when we arrived, he was barely standing. Her eyes were red, he was constantly sweating and coughing; his voice was hoarse” stated Bingöl’s daughter. The family learned that Namık Bingöl’s coronavirus test was positive by chance. After returning home from prison, they received a…
CALL FOR INVESTIGATION: Brutal Stabbing Attack on Businessman Hazim Sesli at Menemen Penitentiary
PDF Link Brutal Stabbing Attack on Businessman Hazim Sesli at Menemen Penitentiary Advocates of Silenced Turkey urges all relevant institutions of the International Human Rights community to petition the Government of Turkey as follows: The Ministry of Justice and the Menemen Type T Penitentiary must urgently carry out a thorough, prompt, independent and impartial investigation into the attack in the custody of Businessman Hazim Sesli in order to determine (a) how a deadly weapon was brought into the prison, (b) why the assailant was left unsupervised for the duration of this nearly fatal attack, and (c) whether prison staff have been involved in planning the attack. Turkish authorities must urgently provide information to resolve questions and suspicions about the Hazim Sesli incident as well as all other allegations of ill-treatment, including violations by guards and other prisoners, of Hizmet Movement members imprisoned for political reasons. Facts of the Hazim…
RELEASE ABDULLAH AYDOGAN: The 74 Year Old Political Prisoner
AST has written an official complaint letter to be shared with relevant United Nations institutions. Please join us in sending a letter to Nils Melzer in order to urge the Special Rapporteur to take action on Turkey’s cruel treatment of Abdullah Aydogan Re: International Law Obligations to Release Abdullah Aydoğan Dear Special Rapporteur Nils Melzer, We write on behalf of Advocates of Silenced Turkey (AST), an advocacy group of concerned human rights defenders who promote international human rights, the independence and security of human rights defenders, the integrity of legal systems and the rule of law through advocacy, education, and research. AST plays a major role in documenting and disseminating information regarding human rights violations committed in the Republic of Turkey. The Republic of Turkey, under the combined leadership of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has systemically detained, arrested, charged and/or imprisoned victims who…
SEND A LETTER : TORTURE ALLEGATIONS
Urge Turkish authorities to investigate and stop the torture of 18 ex-Intelligence employees in Ankara at the counter-terrorism department on December 18th and bring perpetrators to justice. Dear (Mr. Senator) (Law Enforcement Officials), According to information provided by Bold Medya from ex-MIT employee H.Ç’s wife (a lawyer), the detainees were interviewed at 10:30 PM on December 18th, 2019 and threatened with rape using bottles in the counter-terrorism department in Ankara, Turkey. “My husband was threatened with [my safety], although he did not give details about this part. I think this hurt him deeply. He was threatened with his family and his mother. Then they showed him bottles lined up side by side and threatened him saying ‘Look, we oiled this bottle for you. Today we’re only saying hello, you can guess what we will do tomorrow’” said H.Ç, a lawyer and the wife of one of the detainees.…
SEND A LETTER: SENATORS and LAW ENFORCEMENT ABOUT THREATS AGAINST TURKISH CITIZENS
PDF LINK DOC LINK Re: Calling every dissident abroad as a terrorist, Erdogan vows to kill “terrorists”(!) by justifying this attempt with a referral to the operation against Baghdadi Dear (Mr. Senator) (Law Enforcement Officials), It has now been over three years since the failed coup attempt and the Turkish government has been targeting its dissident citizens abroad since then. Until very lately, the issue was a concern of countries where some kidnappings and abductions took place and where authorities acceded to Ankara’s demands for their extradition. However, lately, The U.S. administration also came to face the unpleasant reality of such inhumane practices after the unlawful arrests and imprisonments of American citizens in Turkey. Moreover, while opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have been captured in Moldova, Ukraine, Kosovo, Malaysia, Gabon, and many other countries, last year Erdogan’s spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin hinted that Turkey would conduct such operations on…
