ARBITRARY DETENTION AND ARREST
Throughout the week, prosecutors ordered the detention of at least 57 people over alleged links to the Gülen movement. In October 2020, a UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) opinion said that widespread or systematic imprisonment of individuals with alleged links to the group may amount to crimes against humanity. Solidarity with OTHERS has compiled a detailed database to monitor the Gülen-linked mass detentions since a failed coup in July 2016.
9 October: The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has issued detention warrants for 39 people including active duty and former military officers as well as former military cadets due to their alleged links to the Gülen movement.
ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES
No news has emerged of Yusuf Bilge Tunç, a former public sector worker who was sacked from his job by a decree-law during the 2016-2018 state of emergency and who was reported missing as of August 6, 2019, in what appears to be one of the latest cases in a string of suspected enforced disappearance of government critics since 2016.
FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION
8 October: Turkish police detained 20 protesters in Ankara during a demonstration against Turkey’s ongoing trade with Israel, despite a government-imposed ban.
10 October: During a protest in front of Marmara University's Göztepe Campus in Istanbul against the killing of two women, police intervened and detained five students, accusing them of "insulting the President."
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND MEDIA
9 October: A Turkish court has banned access to Discord due to concerns over child safety following reports of abuse and harassment on the platform.
11 October: As Turkish courts continue to hand down prison sentences to more journalists, the European Parliament on Thursday adopted a resolution on human rights issues in Turkey, expressing deep concern about the ongoing deterioration of democratic standards in the country and the targeting of independent journalists, activists and opposition members.
11 October: The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled that Turkey violated Kurdish musician Hozan Canê's right to freedom of expression after she was convicted for insulting President Erdoğan in a Facebook post, ordering compensation for the violation.
KURDISH MINORITY
9 October: The Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry has refused to allow the Kurdish movie “Rojbash” to be screened in theaters across the country on the grounds that the movie is “not suitable for commercial circulation”.
9 October: A Turkish court has accepted an indictment against Kurdish journalist Melek Avcı over social media posts, accusing her of spreading propaganda.
9 October: In Siirt’s Kurtalan district, five individuals, including co-mayor Sadiye Aktin, DEM Party District Co-chair Saliha Sak, and DBP District Co-chair Sultan Yorulmaz, were detained following a family visit cited as the reason for their arrest.
10 October: Turkey’s top appeals court has upheld a prison sentence of more than nine years handed down to a Kurdish mayor who was removed from office in 2019 and stood trial on terrorism-related charges.
11 October: Kurdish journalist Serhildan Andan was detained in Amed (Diyarbakır) by anti-terror police, although no official reason for the arrest has been disclosed.
11 October: In Antep, DEM Party and DBP co-chairs Mustafa Tuç, Mehmet Özkan, and Müslüm Denizhan were detained by police while traveling in their vehicle and taken to the Anti-Terror Branch for questioning.
OTHER MINORITIES
10 October: Two historic synagogues in İzmir were vandalized, with symbols and messages spray-painted on their doors, amid rising tensions following the Gaza war.
PRISON CONDITIONS
10 October: At İzmir Kırıklar No. 2 F-Type Prison, authorities have confiscated prisoners' personal items, including underwear, socks, towels, and a musical instrument, and seized personal notes and inspected books during monitored cell searches, without returning the confiscated items.
11 October: Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç has announced that 706 children are currently living with their mothers in Turkish prisons.
REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS
11 October: Hüseyin Azuz, a refugee in Mersin, was killed in a racist attack while praying at his workplace. Two other refugees, whose names remain unknown, were injured in the same attack and later taken to a deportation center.
13 October: According to a report by Lighthouse, Turkey, with EU funding, has been detaining refugees in centers and forcibly deporting many back to their home countries, including Syria and Afghanistan, despite the risks they face there.
TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT
9 October: Cem Dursun, an inmate at İzmir Kırıklar No. 1 F-Type Prison, was reportedly asked by prison authorities to pay 150,000 TL to attend his deceased father's funeral.
9 October: Serdar Şitilay, an inmate at Elazığ No. 1 High-Security Prison, had his release postponed for the fourth time, with the Prison Administration and Observation Board extending his detention by six months, citing concerns about his ability to reintegrate into society.
10 October: Mazlum Alan, a prisoner held in İzmir Kırıklar No. 2 F-Type Prison and diagnosed with lung cancer, is reportedly unable to access the necessary treatment under prison conditions.
WOMEN’S RIGHTS
11 October: In İzmir's Konak district, two transgender women from Syria were reportedly attacked by a group in a transphobic assault, resulting in injuries to various parts of their bodies.
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