‘Right to life of at least 281 people violated in June’

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Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) MP and Parliamentary Human Rights Investigation Committee Deputy Chair Sezgin Tanrıkulu has released his "Report on Human Rights Violations in Turkey in June."

The report has shown that while the right to life of at least 281 people was violated last month, 144 people were subjected to torture and ill treatment.

At least three people were taken into custody due to their speeches or writings, at least two people faced investigations and at least one person was sentenced to prison or fined on the same ground.

While at least 15 people were detained due to their social media posts in June, at least 52 people faced investigations for the same reason. At least three people were sentenced to prison or fined or their sentences or fines were upheld in June. Other highlights from the report are as follows:

Arrested lawyers

Lawyers Özgür Yılmaz and Süleyman Gökhan, who work for the People's Law Bureau and are members of the Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) were detained in İstanbul on June 25. They were arrested on June 27 for allegedly "being the members of an organization."

Threatened artists, politicians

Musicians Ferhat Tunç, Pınar Aydınlar, writers Gökhan Yavuzel, Gülfer Akkaya, Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Party Assembly member Veli Saçılık, HDP MPs Serpil Kemalbay, Murat Sarısaç, Hüseyin Kaçmaz, Habip Eksik, Nuran İmir, Semra Güzel, Murat Çepni and Hasan Özgüneş were reportedly threatened with messages sent from a social media account named "jitem.turkey/KodAdım:Yeşil."

JİTEM refers to the Gendarmerie Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism, which is accused of thousands of forced disappearances in Kurdish-majority regions during the conflict in the 1990s.

Extrajudicial killings, stop warnings, random shots

On June 14, a group of soldiers opened fire at the Kaşkol Neighborhood in Başkale district of eastern Van province. While Erhan Görür lost his life, Saim Yılmaz was wounded. First lieutenant Y.E. deposed at the Başkale Public Prosecutor's Office and said, "I opened fire myself. I was the only responsible one there. The other personnel did not fire."

While 10 soldiers who were at the scene of incident deposed at the Esmerpınar Gendarmerie Command, the lawyer of Görür family protested that "the depositions of the suspects and witnesses were taken by their colleagues, which did not comply with the due process."

"It raises the suspicion that an effective investigation is not conducted and something is tried to be covered up," he contended further.

Civilian conflicts and hate crimes

On June 9, Taha B. opened fire on a Syrian family in Reyhanlı district in Turkey's east Mediterranean province of Hatay, claiming the life of Halid Yusuf (2) and wounding his grandfather Muhammed Yusuf.

In Turkey's Black Sea province of Giresun, a person named O.İ. was assaulted by a racist group on June 13 on the ground that he shared the picture of HDP's imprisoned former Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş on social media. O.İ. was reportedly detained after the incident and made to get on a bus by the gendarmerie with 21 other workers on the ground that "their security could not be ensured." They were sent to their hometown in Urfa.

An armed attack was carried out against the vehicle of Human Rights Federation (İHF) Chair Hayrullah Eligül in İzmir on June 17.

188 workers lost their lives

According to the data of Health and Safety Labor Watch (İSİG Assembly), 188 workers lost their lives in June. While four of the deceased were women and eight were children, eight deceased workers were immigrants/ refugees.

Incidents involving vehicles of police-soldiers

A military armed vehicle hit a minibus in the district of Doğubayazıt in Ağrı on June 22, severely wounding Hacı Kandemir, the driver of the minibus.

A boat with refugees on board sank in Lake Van on June 26. While six refugees died, at least 50 got missing. 11 people were detained about the incident. Neighborhood Head of Altınsaç was suspended from duty by the Interior Ministry on the ground that he reported the incident with delay.

144 incidents of torture

In June 2020, at least 28 people, including three children, spoke to the press, filed a criminal complaint and/or appealed to human rights organizations to complain that they were subjected to torture by security forces while they were in custody or outside detention centers.

In meetings and demonstrations, at least 166 people subjected to physical violence of police/ gendarmerie (including HDP MPs Ayşe Sürücü and Tayyip Temel subjected to police violence during the party's "Democracy March" and Bilecik Bar Association Deputy Chair Hasan Şahin and Association of Freedom for Lawyers (ÖHD) Ankara Branch Co-Chair Şevin Kaya while they were trying to enter Ankara as part of bar chairs' "Defense March.")

Torture, ill treatment in prisons

According the news reported in the press and the reports prepared by human rights organizations, at least 31 people were subjected to physical/ psychological violence and/or their right to access healthcare was prevented.

Six prisoners from Kırşehir Type E Prison went on an indefinite and irreversible hunger strike on the ground of "rights violations and torture."

On a death fast for their right to a fair trial, Didem Akman and Özgür Karakaya, two prisoners held in Şakran Prison in İzmir, were reportedly taken to the prison's hospital without their consent on June 25. The HHB announced that a blood sample was taken from Akman involuntarily on June 27. They were sent back to prison on June 27.

Three prisoners from Mardin Type E Prison went on an irreversible and indefinite hunger strike on June 25, demanding "an end to violations of rights." They were given a punishment of staying in a solitary cell for 14 days due to their strike. The prisoners ended their strike on June 28 on the ground that "the prison administration promised to end violations of rights."

Five prisoners from Şanlıurfa Hilvan No 2 Type T Prison went on an indefinite and irreversible hunger strike due to "violations of rights" on June 25.

Six journalists detained, at least 2 arrested

In June, at least six journalists were detained (namely, Tele1 Ankara Representative İsmail Dükel, Oda TV Ankara News Director Müyesser Yıldız, Havadis newspaper columnist, DİSK Emekli-Sen former Chair Veli Beysülen, Zeynel Bulut-Diyarbakır, Ayşe Kara and Hasan Akbaba.) At least two journalists (Müyesser Yıldız and Arif Aslan) were arrested.

According to the data of the Independent Journalism Platform, there are at least 93 journalists behind bars in Turkey.

Journalists threatened

After reporting on ruling AKP's Kozlu Mayor Ali Bektaş in Turkey's Black Sea province of Zonguldak, journalists were threatened by Mayor Bektaş, who stated, "If the justice does not do what is necessary, I will. I will do the necessary to everyone. No one will walk on the streets freely."

Yavuz Selim Demirağ, a columnist for daily Yeniçağ, was threatened with a bullet left in his post box. Demirağ was previously assaulted by a group of people in front of his house in May 2019. Six assaulters were first taken into custody in relation with it, then released.

Working for a local newspaper in eastern Batman province, Hayrettin Önen was wounded in an armed attack on June 11. Two people were reportedly detained in relation with this incident. (RT/SD)