This report, issued by the Advocates of Silence Turkey (AST), details an alarming misuse of counterterrorism laws in Turkey to systematically target and dismantle philanthropic efforts supporting the Gülen Movement.
Press Freedom In Turkey 2024
ATTACKS ON PRESS FREEDOM AND FREE SPEECH IN TURKEY
In Turkey, the press has been marred by government interference and suppression, leading to a precarious environment for journalists, particularly women and those critical of the authorities. In the media landscape, the government’s tight grip on national media outlets has pushed citizens towards seeking information from alternative sources in recent times.
SPECIAL REPORT: “AUTHORITARIANISM UNVEILED: TURKEY’S HUMAN RIGHTS CATASTROPHE”
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Dunja Mijatović, Flags Non-Implementation of Judgments from ECHR, Venice Commission, and Turkish Constitutional Court as Serious Threat to Rule of Law, Public Trust and Constitutional Order
Commissioner issued a comprehensive Memorandum on March 5, 2024, assessing the state of freedom of expression, media, and human rights defenders in Turkey calling for urgent measures to address these challenges, emphasizing alignment with international human rights standards.
Büşra Yılmaztürk: Survival in a Lawless Land
Introduction
On 15 July 2016, Turkey experienced a violent coup that became a significant turning point in its political history. President Erdogan placed the blame for the coup on the Hizmet movement, a faith-inspired civic organization led by Fethullah Gülen, a Muslim scholar and spiritual leader based in Pennsylvania. The followers of this particular movement, settled in different parts of the globe with the intention of building schools and spreading peace around the world, were accused of being terrorists and harboring hostility towards the Turkish government. Although the allegations of parallel state-building were unfounded, the Turkish government initiated a process of arresting and imprisoning members of the Hizmet movement in the absence of any legal proof or evidence.
Freedom Convention on Turkey 2023
The Freedom Convention Turkey 2023 will shed light on critical issues that have garnered international attention in Turkey addressing the democratic backslide, collapse of the rule of law, abuse of anti-terror laws, ramifications of restricted freedom of expression and multifold dwindling human rights.
Justice, Awareness, and Unity: Highlights from the AST Human Rights Festival
The unforgettable AST (Advocates of Silenced Turkey) Human Rights Festival, which took place in Greenview Park in New Jersey, emphasized justice and awareness by taking a stand against the injustices in Turkey. The event held amidst the greenery drew attention to human rights violations on a warm summer day.
Beyond Turkey’s Borders: Unveiling Global Purge, Transnational Repression, Abductions
The Origins of the Problem
Turkey’s pursuit of alignment with the principles of the European Union has been marred by the government’s increasingly authoritarian tendencies, particularly since 2011. Regrettably, the country has witnessed a rapid decline, distancing itself further from the realm of modern democracy. Since 2014, Turkey’s Freedom Index score has plummeted due to a series of escalating assaults on press freedom, social media users, protesters, political parties, the judiciary, and the electoral system. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sought to establish personalized control over the state and society within a deteriorating domestic and regional security environment.
KAHRAMANMARAŞ DEPREMLERİNDE İNSAN HAKLARI İHLALLERİ ÖN RAPORU 2023
Türkiye, dünyanın en aktif deprem kuşaklarından birisi üzerinde bulunmaktadır. Yakın tarih incelendiğinde, büyük depremler olarak 1939 Erzincan, 1941 Van-Erciş, 1946 Varto, 1967 Adapazarı, 1971 Bingöl, 1976 Denizli, 1992 Erzincan, 1995 Dinar, 1998 Ceyhan ve 1999 Marmara ve Düzce, 2003 Bingöl, 2011 Van, 2020 Elazığ ve 2021 İzmir depremleri kaydedilmiştir. Türkiye’de depremlere yönelik bir hazırlık ve planlama yapılması amacıyla, 1945 (Yersarsıntısı Bölgeleri Haritası), 1947, 1963 (Türkiye Deprem Bölgeleri Haritası), 1972, 1996 ve 2019 (Türkiye Deprem Tehlike Haritası) yıllarında deprem bölgeleri haritaları hazırlanmış ve geliştirilerek 6 kez güncellenmiştir. Bu kapsamda, bölgesel çalışmalar yapılmış ve örneğin 2020 yılında AFAD tarafından hazırlanan Kahramanmaraş İl Afet Riski Azaltma Planı ile depreme yönelik bir hazırlık öngörüsü geliştirilmiştir.
Being the Other Child in Turkey
The current regime in Turkey, supported by the State of Emergency (OHAL) and Statutory Decrees (KHK), which is still in effect de facto albeit discontinued de jure, has been carrying out an open and covert social genocide against some parts of Turkey for years. The members of the Hizmet movement, whose number reaches approximately 8.5 million, including their relatives, were exposed to social lynching, direct and indirect rights violations, and grievances that are difficult to compensate. Similarly, along with the policy of persecuting Kurds by denying their ethnic identity, discriminatory and oppressive practices against certain groups such as Alevis and leftists continue.
Freedom Convention 2022
Since the failed coup attempt in 2016, Turkish government has been carrying out profound human rights violations against hundreds of thousands of people – from arbitrary deprivation of the right to work and to freedom of movement, to torture and other ill-treatment, arbitrary detentions and infringements of the rights to freedom of association and expression.
AST, deeply concerned about Turkey’s government’s disregard of human rights, has been organizing The Freedom Convention since 2020. Remarking on the international covenants, of which Turkey is a state party, this year the convention will address the arbitrary deprivation of civil and political rights and crack down on freedom of expression in Turkey.
