‘The last 10 years have been turbulent for Turkey’s civil society’

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The Rawest Research company has released a report titled "The Scene of Civil Society in the East and Southeast and COVID-19 Affect."

For its report shared with the public last month, the company talked to 40 representatives from civil society organizations and 379 people working in different positions in civil society, predominantly in Turkey's eastern and southern provinces of Diyarbakır, Van, Mardin and Urfa. 30 percent of the participants were from other provinces.

As part of the research, the workers and representatives of civil society organizations were asked about the current situation of civil society organizations, their works and evaluations as to the field of civil society and how much they have been affected by the pandemic.

The findings of the study have shown that the representatives of civil society organizations evaluate the NGOs capacity of influence depending on the political conjuncture. According to them, especially the human rights organizations' capacity of influence is closely related to the political and social developments, especially within the frame of Kurdish question.

The report of the Rawest has shown that the pressures targeting the field of civil society, the state's efforts to shrink its space and the trustees appointed to the municipalities undermine their sphere of influence.

The report of the company has also noted that while civil society gained momentum in Turkey in the early 2000s, its space has shrunk considerably after the failed military coup attempt on July 15, 2016.

'Declining activity, visibility reflected in data'

The Rawest report has underlined that "the declining activity and visibility of NGOs over the years is reflected in the data as well."

"Three out of every five people think that NGOs are not as active or effective as they used to be," the report has commented and added:

"Participants generally associate the NGOs failure to be active and visible with political developments. It is indicated that after the coup attempt on July 15, pressure mounted on the field of civil society, the NGOs closed by Statutory Decrees have led to a void in the field and the mainstream media outlets do not convey the voice of civil society to the public.

"It is frequently reiterated that civil society organizations are having financial difficulties and they cannot be active or visible for these reasons. It is emphasized that media visibility leads civil society to turn to online platforms, but this shift also poses disadvantages."

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'A turbulent course for civil society'

The report has further commented that "the field of civil society in Turkey has been following a turbulent course, especially in the last 10 years."

Noting that the early 2000s saw a momentum on the part of civil society as a result of democratization steps in the country, the report has underlined that there has been a shrinking space for civil society in Turkey, especially after the military coup attempt in July 2016.

"The Resolution Process in 2013-2015 opened a wide public space, especially for the civil society organizations that had been working on the Kurdish issue and located in Kurdish-majority provinces," the Rawest has commented and added, "However, after the resolution process was ended in 2015 and clashes broke out, this time in city centers and in a more violent manner, it has shrunk the public space of civil society."

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'1,419 associations closed after coup attempt'

Referring to the data of the Human Rights Joint Platform (İHÖP), the company has raised concerns that 1,419 associations, 145 foundations and 174 media/press outlets were closed as of March 20, 2018.

"Taken together with the discharge of over a hundred thousand people from public service and/or their prosecution as well as the appointment of trustees to municipalities, it can be understood that the mobility in the field of civil society has almost come to a halt," it has added.

Within this context, the report has put a specific emphasis on Diyarbakır as a center in the region for civil society activities in general and human rights struggle in particular, the report has noted that the above-mentioned factors have stopped the civil society works in the region to a considerable extent. (RT/SD)