"Detention as a Means of Punishment"

Bianet talked to representatives of Turkish human rights organizations about applications of detentions regarding major cases currently tried. This concerns first of all the "Sledgehammer" case which made the headlines in the beginning of this week because of the latest decision to arrest a total of 163 retired and active military officers; furthermore the Ergenekon trial, the KCK trial with 104 detained defendants and the "Revolutionary Headquarters" trial. All interviewed organizations agreed that detention in Turkey is not being used as a means of precaution but as a punishment.

Bakkalcı: Daily life leaves us breathless

Metin Bakkalcı, Secretary General of the Turkish Human Rights Foundation (TİHV), expressed his concern about a restriction of human rights, "In recent times we are seriously concerned about human rights. Everyday life is being narrowed, it came to point where we cannot breath anymore. The Special Authority Courts carry on with the contents of the former State Security Courts (DGM)".

"We have law articles that are based on arbitrariness. (...) Turkey has experienced a process during the past five years that has not been seen in its history before. According to data compiled by the Ministry of Justice, the number of prisoners doubled since 2005 from 60,000 inmates to more than 120,000. About half of them are detained on remand. This reveals to which extend the judiciary has become a political instrument. Military coups were carried out in this country and we have to come to terms with them, particularly with the coup on 28 February [1997]".

Şeyhanlıoğlu: We demand fair trial procedures for all defendants

Emrah Şeyhanoğlu, Secretary General of the Human Rights Association (İHD), commented, "I cannot say anything about the Sledgehammer case because I am not familiar with the file. Thus, I do not know whether special circumstances justify the collective arrests. But regardless of who the suspects or defendants are, one must not abandon the principles of the state of law. We initiated a study on a 'fair trial instead of a special prosecution' in this aspect at the end of 2010. We request to abolish the Special Authority Courts. A fair trial must be guaranteed for all cases, not only for the Sledgehammer trial".

Cengiz: Arrests are normal for procedures like the Sledgehammer trial

Orhan Kemal Cengiz, President of the Human Rights Agenda Association (İHGD), criticized the handling of the Ergenekon case. "For a qualified comment I would have to study the case and the reasons for detention given by the court. But as far as the Ergenekon trial is concerned, the detentions are problematic. While the actual perpetrators were released, their assistants are in prison. However, regarding the accusations put forward in the context of the Sledgehammer case, people in such important positions would have been detained in any other country too. In Turkey, detention is being used as a means of punishment. We only focus on the Ergenekon trial but this problem still persists at Special Authority Courts.

Beytar: Procedural deficiencies and mistakes

Emrullah Beytar, Vice President of the Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples (MAZLUMDER), also pointed to the fact that decisions for detention have been turned into the execution of a verdict in Turkey. "The judiciary needs to be modernized. Otherwise, serious procedural failings in the prosecution mechanisms will continue. We do not know the reasons for the detentions related to the Sledgehammer case but this process is marked by procedural deficiencies and mistakes. The judiciary is one of the biggest problems in Turkey. People always talk about military tutelage but the ideological attitude of the judiciary and the politicization of judicial mechanisms are a huge problem. Especially the judges do not seem to have a clue about decisions given by the European Court of Human Rights". (AS/EÖ)