The Center for Field Studies (SAMER) published its “Press Monitoring Report on Racist Attacks Against Kurds, Alevis, and Refugees” covering the period from 1 January to 30 December 2025.
The report identified at least 112 racist, exclusionary, or denial-based incidents reflected in national and local media.
According to the report, although discourses of “peace,” “normalization,” and “social reconciliation” resurfaced in 2025, discriminatory practices against Kurds, refugees, and Alevis remained widespread and took on a structural character.
The SAMER report stated: “According to the data, violations were not limited to individual acts of hatred, but gained an institutional dimension through public authorities, law enforcement, prison administrations, and local governments.”
Violations targeting Kurdish identity and the Kurdish language were reported to be concentrated in the areas of freedom of expression, cultural rights, political participation, and the right to life.
These violations included the closure of Kurdish language courses, detentions and prison sentences due to Kurdish songs and slogans, bans on Kurdish-language broadcasts, and the exclusion of Kurdish from public spaces. The postponement of the release of ill prisoners and disciplinary punishments imposed because of the use of Kurdish in prisons were also highlighted in the report.
Violations against refugees were mainly recorded as violations of the right to life, the right to health, and the principle of non-refoulement. Deaths at border areas and at sea, allegations of violence in deportation centers, obstacles to accessing healthcare services, and exploitation in working life were included in the report.
Violations against Alevis were said to be concentrated around freedom of belief and hate speech, with particular attention drawn to the criminalization of Alevi institutions, inequality in public services, interventions in sacred sites, and discriminatory discourse in the field of education.
According to the press monitoring, 89 racist or exclusionary incidents against Kurds, 17 against refugees, and 6 against Alevis were identified in 2025.
SAMER emphasized that the cases reflected in the media represent only the visible part of the violations, and that the real situation could be far more severe.