A torture victim who was detained as part of Turkey’s post-coup crackdown when he was a 20-year old university student has said he lost his eyesight due to blows to the head in police custody.
Hayati Uysal was detained on September 1, 2016 in Bursa over alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement. After five days in detention, he was transferred to Zonguldak, where he allegedly suffered torture and abuse by the police, who wanted to get a forced confession. He talked about his ordeal in an interview with Sevinç Özarslan of the Kronos news website.
“I was interrogated repeatedly by two individuals who identified themselves as plainclothes police officers,” Uysal said. “I was pressured to confess to crimes I didn’t commit and to implicate people I didn’t know.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement, inspired by Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen, since the corruption investigations in 2013, which implicated then-prime minister Erdoğan, his family members and his inner circle.
Dismissing the investigations as a Gülenist coup and conspiracy against his government, Erdoğan designated the movement as a terrorist organization and began to target its members. He intensified the crackdown on the movement following an abortive putsch in 2016 that he accused Gülen of masterminding. Gülen and the movement strongly deny involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
Uysal says the physical abuse caused severe eye damage. “Due to the blows to my head, I suffered vision impairment and had to have an eye transplant,” he said. “My left eye now sees only 5 percent, and my right eye has a 25 percent vision loss.”
Upon his release, Uysal was estranged from his family due to the political environment and had difficulty securing employment. “I found a job but had to leave when they discovered my background,” he said.
After nine months gendarmes raided his house to detain him, but he wasn’t at home. He had fled Turkey, seeking safety in Europe.
After the abortive putsch, ill-treatment and torture became widespread and systematic in Turkish detention centers as evidenced by the UN special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment in a report based on his mission to Turkey between November 27 and December 2, 2016. Lack of condemnation from higher officials and a readiness to cover up allegations rather than investigate them have resulted in widespread impunity for the security forces.
Individuals detained over alleged Gülen links often face widespread social exclusion upon release. The government’s post-coup crackdown has stigmatized those accused of association with the movement, branding them as “terrorists.” This has resulted in significant challenges, with employers avoiding hiring them out of fear of government reprisal or societal stigma. Many report being shunned by their communities, creating a climate of marginalization.
Uysal says the trauma still affects him, with recurring nightmares and panic attacks. “Even now, I sometimes dream of being back in Turkey, but at least I no longer jump when the doorbell rings,” he said.
The psychological toll of his ordeal led to long-term mental health issues, for which Uysal continues to receive treatment.
Since the failed coup, Turkish authorities have investigated over 705,172 people on terrorism or coup-related charges due to alleged links to the Gülen movement. As of July 2024, there are 13,251 people in prison on related charges.
Between June 2023 and June 2024, authorities carried out 5,543 police operations, arresting 1,595 people linked to the movement.
Many others fled Turkey to escape the crackdown.
