FIFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE EU TURKEY AND THE KURDS

FIFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE EU, TURKEY AND THE KURDS
Session 2: EU Turkish Accession, Human Rights and
Rule of Law
2.1 Turkey’s Compliance with International Human Rights Obligations
Ibrahim Bilmez
Deadlock and the human rights situation
At last year’s conference we discussed where Turkey was in terms of humanitarian
law. Unfortunately there is not much of a change. Although the AKP government
have made some quick cosmetic changes, the human rights situation in Turkey is
definitely not looking bright.
One would wish to talk about positive developments and the steps that have been
taken in terms of democratization and human rights. Yet, in 2008 there have been immense
violations on the issue of human rights. Instead of searching for a permanent
solution to the problems, the AKP government continued with their hard-headed
approach. The reform process that had started during the EU membership process
halted in 2005 and any developments rapidly reversed, due to the government’s decision
not to solve the Kurdish issue, but instead intensify the cross border operations.
These kinds of developments caused the violations of the fundamental rights such as
the right to life, freedom of thought and freedom of expression.
A report published by the Human Rights Association Diyarbakır Branch highlights
this. According to the organisations’ report, in 2005 there were 7,499 reported violations,
in 2006, 7,499 reported violations and in 2007, 18.479 reported violations in the
Kurdish areas. In 2008 that figure rose to 35.992.
The situation in terms of the right to life, which is the core of the rights and freedoms,
is not very promising. Legal changes in 2007 gave more power to the police force and
as a result violence committed by the police and gendarmerie has increased massively.
During the Newroz celebrations in 2008, hundreds of woman and children
were badly beaten in front of the TV cameras. Members of the police force fired on
the crowd and five civilians were killed. Women and children were arrested and some
of those children have been sentenced for up to 25 years in prison.
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