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Turkey Rights Monitor - Issue 232

ARBITRARY DETENTION AND ARREST

Throughout the week, prosecutors ordered the detention of at least 72 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.



27 November: Turkish authorities have arrested a lawyer in a sweeping operation targeting individuals with alleged links to the Gülen movement.


Seyfullah Tosun

29 November: Turkish police detained 35 individuals in action that took place across 12 provinces as part of an ongoing crackdown on alleged members of 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

26 November: Police in Istanbul detained 169 demonstrators demanding action to end violence against women on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.



FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND MEDIA

27 November: Turkey's Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) has imposed sanctions on 11 television channels, including Halk TV, Flash Haber, Tele 1, and Sözcü TV, citing violations such as airing content deemed contrary to national and moral values.


26 November: As part of an investigation led by the Eskişehir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, police conducted house raids across four provinces—İstanbul, Diyarbakır, Ankara, and Batman—resulting in the detention of at least 13 individuals, including journalists, directors, and press workers.


HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS

26 November: Prominent human rights defender Nimet Tanrıkulu, a founding member of the Human Rights Association, was detained during nationwide police operations on November 26, 2024, targeting activists, mayors, and journalists.


Nimet Tanrıkulu

JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE & RULE OF LAW

25 November: The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) notified Ankara of 1,000 new applications arising from five cases now on its docket related to convictions of Gülen movement membership over the use of the ByLock smartphone application.



28 November: Turkish authorities reportedly exploit alleged links to the Gülen movement as leverage to exert control over the judiciary, using accusations to pressure judges and prosecutors, further undermining judicial independence.


28 November: Şahismail Göyük, the elected neighbourhood representative of Burmadere village in Ardahan's Damal district, was removed from his position after advocating for equal citizenship rights for Alevis and criticizing the government's approach to cemevis, with District Special Administration Director Yasin Zorlu, reportedly affiliated with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), appointed as trustee in his place.


29 November: Nacho Sánchez Amor, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey, sharply criticized the Turkish government for prosecuting 14-year-old girls on terrorism charges.


Nacho Sanchez Amor

29 November: The Turkish Ministry of the Interior has removed Ayvaz Hazır, the co-mayor of Bahçesaray in Van province, from office following his sentencing to three years and eleven months in prison for "committing crimes on behalf of a terrorist organization without being a member," appointing District Governor Harun Arslanargun as trustee in his place.


Ayvaz Hazır (right)

KURDISH MINORITY

26 November: Turkish authorities detained 231 individuals, including mayors, journalists, and activists, in nationwide anti-terror raids targeting Kurdish people for alleged links to terror organizations.



26 November: Kayapınar District Co-Mayor Cengiz Dündar was detained during police operations in Diyarbakır, which also targeted members of the Education and Science Workers' Union (Eğitim-Sen).


Cengiz Dündar

29 November: Seventeen people, including politicians, journalists, lawyers and human rights activists who were among 231 individuals detained earlier this week due to their alleged links to terrorist organizations, have been referred to court for arrest.


29 November: Ayvaz Hazır, co-mayor of Bahçesaray in Van province, was sentenced to three years and eleven months in prison for allegedly committing crimes on behalf of a terrorist organization without being a member.


30 November: Dersim Co-Mayor Birsen Orhan has been arrested on charges of violating the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations and resisting public officials, sparking concerns over the increasing crackdown on local politicians in Turkey.



REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS

26 November: Three foreign nationals detained during the November 25 demonstrations in Istanbul remain in a removal center, facing potential deportation despite calls for their release.


28 November: in Geçitvermez, a village in Van's Başkale district near the Iranian border, the bodies of three refugees—believed to be members of the same family, including a child—were found frozen to death, likely due to harsh winter conditions.


TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT

26 November: Journalist Erdoğan Alayumat was subjected to a strip search at the Istanbul Provincial Security Directorate following his detention on November 25, 2024, as part of a "terror" investigation, despite his objections and assertion that the procedure violated human rights.


Erdoğan Alayumat

26 November: Azerbaijani queer activists Ali Malikov and Parvin Alakbarova were subjected to police violence and detained during a November 25 demonstration in Istanbul, facing potential deportation.


26 November: in Ankara's Altındağ district, at least 10 children were reportedly subjected to physical violence by security guards in Peyami Tepe Park for lighting a fire, with seven detained on charges of resisting public officials, while three obtained medical reports documenting the abuse.


28 November: Fatma Zozan Bor, a Kurdish artist, has said she was strip-searched as well as verbally and physically harassed by the police after she was detained during an art exhibition in southeastern Turkey.


Fatma Zozan Bor

TRANSNATIONAL REPRESSION

30 November: Federal prosecutors in Germany have charged a Turkish national with espionage, alleging he spied on a group of Turkish nationals who fled a political crackdown initiated by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and provided information on them to Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MİT).

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