HUMAN RIGHTS

Latest News

• ÖHD report: Release of 93 prisoners blocked in Marmara prisons 

  The Istanbul branch of the ÖHD reported that 93 inmates in 17 prisons across the Marmara Region were denied release.
• Final declaration of 'Memory and Justice' conference in Amed announced 

  The 'Memory and Justice' conference held in Amed underlined that confronting the past is essential for achieving peace.
• Saturday Mother Emine Ocak in intensive care 

  Saturday Mother Emine Ocak was in intensive care after having a heart attack on 20 June.
• Report exposes serious human rights violations in Bolu Prison 

  A new report by DEM Party MP Newroz Uysal Aslan reveals serious human rights violations in Bolu’s high-security prison and urges the Turkish parliament to take immediate action.
• Celiac journalist Erkılınç denied medical treatment in prison 

  Eren Keskin visited journalist Perihan Sevda Erkılınç, who is imprisoned in Bakırköy Prison and suffers from celiac disease and asthma,and and said that her health is worsening.
• Hunger strike in Basel demands closure of isolation-type prison cells 

  A three-day hunger strike in Basel called for international solidarity against isolation in Turkish and Hungarian prisons and demanded freedom for SGDF prisoners.
• AI: Unlawful use of force by police against protestors in Turkey may amount to torture 

  Amnesty International documents police violence during and in the aftermath of largely peaceful nationwide protests that erupted following the detention of Ekrem İmamoğlu, Mayor of Istanbul, and 91 others on 19 March 2025.
• Imprisoned for 32 years, Nedim Yılmaz sees his release postponed for the eighth time 

  The release of Nedim Yılmaz, a prisoner behind bars for 32 years, has been postponed for the eighth time.
• Seriously ill prisoner not transferred to Forensic Medicine Institution despite official order  

  Although the public prosecutor's office ordered the immediate transfer of seriously ill 85-year-old prisoner Sıddık Güler to the Institute of Forensic Medicine, this has not yet been carried out. The DEM Party brought the case before parliament.
• Lawyer Çakaş: The right to hope is the path to peace 

  Lawyer Yusuf Çakaş said that Öcalan’s physical freedom must be secured for the process to move forward, and steps on the right to hope will pave the way for lasting peace.
• ‘The right to hope concerns the collective conscience of society’ 

  Lawyer Muhittin Muğuç said that the right to hope hope is not only a legal issue but also part of Turkey's confrontation with democracy.
• Imprisoned for 30 years, 70-year-old man dies shortly after release from jail 

  Şemsettin Ekinci, who was 39 years old when imprisoned, was released in January 2025 after 30 years of imprisonment. Having suffered various health issues during his imprisonment, he died at the age of 70 shortly after his release.
• Diyarbakır Bar Association: There are between 3 and 4 million child workers in Turkey 

  According to OECD data, 6.5 million children in Turkey live in “extreme poverty”; one in five children is malnourished, and one in four goes to school hungry.
• Families find destroyed graves after ten-year ban on cemetery visits 

  Families visiting cemeteries after a ten-year ban met with destroyed graves.
• ISIG: At least 177 workers lost their lives in a month 

  ISIG reported 177 worker deaths across Turkey in May.
• Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ 'Right to Hope' deadline expires in 3 months 

  The deadline given by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers regarding the 'right to hope' decision for Öcalan is set to expire in September 2025.
• Release of prisoner delayed over Kurdish identity remark 

  Nihat Şahin’s release from Tekirdağ Prison was postponed after he stated, “I paid the price to live with my Kurdish identity.”
• Executions surge in Iran as 95 people put to death in early June 

  The “No to Executions on Tuesdays” campaign reported that executed at least 95 people during the first weeks of June in Iran.
• Saturday Mothers: We haven't celebrated a single Eid in 30 years, we just want a gravestone 

  The Saturday Mothers, who gathered for the 1054th time in Istanbul’s Galatasaray Square, expressed their determination to continue their struggle to demand the prosecution of those responsible and recognition of the state injustice done to their families.
• Iranian court summons 15 Kurdish teacher activists over 2022 protest 

  The case reportedly stems from a complaint lodged by the Sanandaj Prosecutor’s Office linked to a teachers’ protest held outside the Ministry of Education building in Sanandaj in June 2022.
• Cênî to protest repression in Maxmur Camp 

  A rally will take place in front of the Iraqi Embassy in Berlin to draw attention to the dire situation in the Kurdish refugee camp Maxmur.
• Erözsoy: Anyone with a conscience must oppose pit-type prisons 

  ESP Esenyurt Representative Cafer Erözsoy, released from Karatepe Y-Type Prison, called for the closure of pit-type prisons, saying they violate human dignity.
• Güler: Prisoners’ right to life is being violated 

  Lawyer Ahmet Güler said that denying the release of seriously ill prisoners is a direct violation of the right to life.
• IHR: Iran executed 152 people in May 

  The IHR reported a surge in executions last month and called for immediate international action against the rising repression.
• No justice without investigation 

  Twenty-four years after the disappearance of HADEP politician Serdar Tanış, his brother Yakup accuses the Turkish state of systematic cover-up and impunity.