Media coverage of detainees with signs of beatings indicate that torture and ill-treatment are officially being condoned to silence and prevent dissent, a recent report by the UK-based Freedom from Torture said with regards to reports on torture allegations in Turkey.
“This contributes to an environment in which torture is officially endorsed tacitly or overtly as a tactic to control political opponents and counter terrorism,” stated the the report, dated Apr.13, 2017.
In the aftermath of an attempted coup on July 15, 2016 the state-run Anadolu news agency unabashedly shared photos of tortured soldiers who had been detained over their alleged involvement in the coup bid.
Its recent report, titled “Torture in Turkey: past, present and future?” the organization documents cases of torture between 1992 to 2015, saying: “People tortured in the aftermath of the attempted coup have not yet reached Freedom from Torture’s service.”
However, the organization says torture has always been used as “a method of control widely used to suppress political activity,” as was observed also in the aftermath of the July 15, 2016 coup attempt.
The organization has called on Turkish government to review the temporary suspension of parts of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). “The government should also immediately authorize the publication the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture’s report from its August 2016 visit.”
Carry out a comprehensive review of the emergency legislation and related derogations from civil and political rights to ensure that emergency measures are proportional and limited to the necessary terms of duration, geographic coverage and material scope.
Established in 1985, Freedom from Torture is a human rights organization dedicated to the treatment and rehabilitation of torture survivors. (turkeypurge.com) May 12, 2017
