The Human Rights Association (İHD) released its report on violations committed during protests in Turkey against the attacks launched against North and East Syria by HTS, ISIS, and Turkey-affiliated paramilitary groups on January 6.
The report, published on the association’s website, stated that police intervened in more than 70 peaceful demonstrations held in at least 22 provinces across Turkey, using tear gas, rubber bullets, and pressurized water, along with physical violence against many. The report noted that at least 930 people were detained during the protests, while at least 123 people, including journalists and children, were remanded in custody. On the other hand, many people were subjected to torture and ill-treatment, which left one person dead. In addition, at least 46 foreign nationals detained during the protests were deported.
The report further stated that bans on actions and events were imposed by governorates in Urfa, Mardin, and Amed (tr: Diyarbakır), and a refugee in Mersin lost his life as a result of random gunfire opened against protesters. At least 5 people were injured, 4 of whom were journalists.
Violations against press and freedom of expression
The report, which also included violations against the press and freedom of expression, stated that at least eight journalists were detained while covering the demonstrations and journalist Nedim Oruç was imprisoned. On the other hand, access to the social media accounts and websites of many media outlets, including Mezopotamya Agency, Jinnews, ETHA, Yeni Yaşam, and Ajansa Welat, was blocked, and hundreds of social media accounts were shut down.
Posts shared on social media also resulted in detentions and arrests. Four people, including two children, were detained for sharing a video of braiding hair as a reaction to the attacks, and one child was remanded in custody. A nurse was suspended from duty for sharing her hair-braiding video and administrative sanctions were imposed on the club president and footballer Çekdar Orhan on the grounds that a hair-braiding choreography was displayed from the stands at an Amedspor match.
‘Violations have a structural and systematic character’
The report stated that the principles of necessity and proportionality were not complied with during police interventions in the protests: “Practices such as use of tear gas, rubber bullets, pressurized water, physical violence, reverse handcuffing, threats, degrading treatment, and obstruction of access to healthcare were widely implemented. In some cases, demonstrators suffering severe injuries that threatened their right to life were deprived of effective medical protection, clearly revealing the close relationship between the prohibition of torture and the right to life. Similarly, the obstruction or delay of access to a lawyer, restrictions on access to detention lists and process information, conducting procedures without legal counsel, and the effective suspension of special protection guarantees for children indicate that the violations are not isolated but have a structural and systematic character.”
Recommendations and demands
The report listed the following recommendations and demands to prevent rights violations during interventions in social events:
* Immediate, independent, impartial, and effective investigations must be conducted regarding violations of the right to life, allegations of torture and ill-treatment, obstruction of access to healthcare, violence applied during detention, imprisonment, and deportation processes, and all actions that may give rise to the responsibility of law enforcement and other public officials; those responsible must not be protected by impunity.
* The blanket banning of peaceful protests must be ended; general and indiscriminate bans imposed by governorates must be lifted; police interventions must be limited strictly within the framework of legality, legitimate aim, necessity, and proportionality.
* Independent monitoring mechanisms must be operated throughout all detention, transfer, hospital, prison, and deportation processes. All practices that prevent the documentation of torture allegations must be abolished; medical examinations and reporting in line with the Istanbul Protocol must be ensured.
* Immediate and effective access to a lawyer must be provided for everyone detained; lawyers must not be prevented from obtaining information about where their clients are, what procedures they are subjected to, and their health conditions. Effective administrative and criminal processes must be carried out against unlawful practices such as taking statements without a lawyer, forcing individuals to sign documents under pressure, imposing de facto identifications, and fabricating evidence.
* The criminalization of children due to protests and social media posts must be ended; measures such as apprehension, detention, transfer, and imprisonment of children must become exceptional; the principle of the best interests of the child must be taken as a basis in all procedures. Special investigation mechanisms must be activated regarding practices such as handcuffing children, interrogating them without a lawyer, subjecting them to procedures at late hours, and exposing them to ill-treatment upon entry to prison.
* The targeting of journalists during news coverage, their detention and imprisonment under torture and ill-treatment must be ended; access restrictions on the websites and social media accounts of news organizations and journalists must be lifted. Arbitrary investigations and punishment practices due to social media posts must come to an end.
* Targeting based on ethnic identity and hate speech must be combated; public authorities and political actors must refrain from statements that deepen social polarization and hostility, and must adopt a rights-based and peaceful language.
* Turkey must effectively guarantee the right to life, the prohibition of torture, freedom of assembly and demonstration, freedom of expression, and the right to a fair trial in line with its obligations arising from international human rights conventions to which it is a party and the Constitution; it must act in full cooperation with national and international monitoring mechanisms.
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