As the peoples of Kurdistan, Turkey and the world prepare to leave another year behind, significant steps are expected in 2026 within the framework of the Peace and Democratic Society Process. While 2025 was a year in which non-conflict and peace were widely discussed for the peoples of Kurdistan and Turkey, the dialogue and political softening seen in politics did not translate into realities on the ground or within the judiciary.
During a year in which peace was frequently invoked, judicial practices in 2025 were marked by policies of impunity, particularly affecting women and children, while the judiciary failed to deliver independent rulings in political cases. In the face of rights violations, torture and persistent problems in prisons, the judiciary remained silent, effectively turning a blind eye to the abuses.
Every segment of society has been affected by lawlessness
Courts acting on political motives and issuing biased rulings have continued to rely on the practice of secret witnesses in political cases, even in the absence of concrete evidence. In crimes committed against children and women, the judiciary has taken steps that effectively protect male perpetrators. At a time when debates over a democratic constitution in line with the democratic process are ongoing, constitutional change has emerged as a primary demand across society. Women, children, political prisoners and minority communities, whose lives are subject to judicial intervention in every sphere, are calling for independent and lawful judicial decisions. Alongside policies of impunity, the “right to hope,” the failure to release seriously ill prisoners, decisions by Administrative Observation Boards, workplace deaths, attacks on journalists, and the seizure of municipalities stand out as the leading manifestations of the prevailing lawlessness.
Gizem Miran, a member of the Diyarbakır (Amed) branch of the Association of Lawyers for Freedom (ÖHD), spoke to ANF about these violations, saying that the judiciary in 2025 faced serious problems in ensuring access to rights for broad segments of society. She stressed that, in order to fully understand this situation, the period between 2005 and 2025 must be examined in a comprehensive manner.
Crimes against women left unpunished
Gizem Miran said that women are at the forefront of affected social groups, noting that they face serious rights violations both in public life and within judicial processes. Miran said: “As you know, not only in Turkey and Kurdistan but almost everywhere in the world, we unfortunately see a proportional increase in violence against women in 2025 compared to 2024. While 2025 has been a period marked by a rise in violence against women and rights violations, it has also been a year in which women’s struggle and women’s liberation gained significant momentum.”
Miran also drew attention to a violence report published by the Diyarbakır Network for Combating Violence, saying that the report presents a detailed account of the city’s record of violence. She said, “With contributions from many institutions, the report provides a very detailed proportional assessment of cases of violence and unfortunately shows an increase across almost all types of violence. This situation is inseparable from the absence of a rights-based, holistic policy, the failure to implement such policies, and the ineffectiveness of legal mechanisms.”
Miran said that the ineffectiveness of legal mechanisms fuels violence. She said: “The failure to conduct effective investigations, the use of discretionary sentence reductions and unjust provocation during sentencing, and the continuation of policies of impunity lead not to a decrease in violence, but to its increase. Hate speech is being spread across all segments of society. Digital violence has also become one of the main tools of this hate speech, and unfortunately this is where we see the sharpest rise.”
The justice system for children is punitive, not restorative
Gizem Miran also assessed the situation from the perspective of children, recalling that under universal legal principles the child justice system must be restorative. Miraz said: “When we speak of justice for children, it should not be punitive, but a restorative system that prioritizes the child’s reintegration into society. Yet in 2025, at a time when we should be discussing the principle that detention must be a last resort, even the definition of a ‘child dragged into crime’ has been problematically brought into question.”
Miran said that children are being seriously re-victimized during judicial proceedings. She said, “Both children accused of offences and children who are victims of violence and abuse are exposed to a second form of violence within judicial processes. Instead of fast, effective mechanisms designed to protect the child, we are witnessing the exact opposite.”
She also addressed politically motivated trials, stressing that this reality has shown continuity from the past to the present. Miran said: “From the period of State Security Courts in the 1990s, to enforced disappearances, and from policies of impunity to the present day, we are faced with a form of politically driven adjudication that is not rights-based, disregards the principle of equality, and instrumentalizes the law. Unfortunately, these practices have not been abandoned in 2025 either.”
The spirit of the process did not reach the judiciary
Gizem Miran said that despite the Peace and Democratic Society Process, no fundamental change has taken place in judicial practice. Miran said: “Although a decline has been observed in politically motivated operations since the second half of 2025, we clearly see that the spirit of this process has not been reflected in the judiciary when it comes to ongoing cases. The existing laws and the approach of those implementing them are not rights-based. In 2025, prisons have continued to be places where serious rights violations occur. Prisoners face severe obstacles in accessing basic rights such as accommodation, nutrition, communication and freedom of expression, while torture and inhuman or degrading treatment persist.”
The right to hope is essential for building a democratic society
Miran also shared her assessment of the Judicial Package, saying that inequality in the execution of sentences continues. She said: “Prisoners sentenced as a result of politically motivated trials are excluded from partial amnesty regulations. Arbitrary decisions by Administrative Observation Boards further deepen inequality in the implementation of conditional release. This situation does not align with the spirit of the peace and democratic society process.”
Outlining her expectations for 2026, Miran underlined that the right to hope must be implemented without delay. She said: “Implementing the right to hope in line with rulings of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is essential for the democratization of this country, for restoring trust in the judiciary, and for building a democratic society.”
In 2026, the judiciary must prioritize democratization
Gizem Miran said that in 2026 the judiciary, the executive and the legislature must act in line with social expectations through laws that place democratization at their core, adding that a democratization process shaped together with society is essential. She said, “Only in this way can judicial practice evolve toward where it should be,” and concluding her assessment.
Data on rights violations recorded in 2025:
* At least 2,519 people faced violations of the right to life; 187 of them were children.
* At least 1,823 workers lost their lives in workplace killings; 85 were children.
* 271 women and 60 children were killed as a result of male violence.
* 115 people (38 of them children) lost their lives due to official negligence and errors.
* At least 24 detainees or prisoners died in prisons.
* 2,807 people (15 children) were subjected to torture or ill-treatment in custody, in prisons, on the streets or during protests.
* 807 detainees or prisoners were subjected to physical or psychological violence in prisons.
* At least 427 political and trade union leaders were detained.
* 21 municipalities were seized or their mayors were removed from office.
* Numerous closure and ban decisions were issued against associations, student groups and trade union activities.
* 222 demonstrations and events were intervened in.
* 4,393 people were taken into custody and 436 were arrested.
* At least 51 events were banned.