Human Rights Foundation of Turkey Documentation Center[1][2][3][4][5]
21 February 2024 Daily Human Rights Report
(02/193) Operations and Attacks…
It is learned from the news coverage of February 21, 2024, that 1 militant died in a clash between the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) units and HPG militants in the Zap area of Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government (IKBY) on February 17, 2024.
(02/194) Torture and Other Ill-Treatment in Prison…
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that salt, sugar, vitamins, and lemon given to prisoners in Diyarbakır High-Security Prison No. 1, who are on hunger strike demanding an end to the isolation of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan and a democratic solution to the Kurdish issue, were not enough.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners on hunger strike in Diyarbakır High-Security Prison No 2 were not given vitamins and disciplinary proceedings were initiated against some prisoners for participating in the hunger strike; prisoners were subjected to a strip search during hospital transfers; prisoners in solitary cells under aggravated life imprisonment had their ventilation times changed and prisoners who reacted to this were banned from social activities.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that the food given to prisoners in Diyarbakır Women’s Prison after the hunger strike for the same reason was of poor quality.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Erzincan Women’s Prison who went on a hunger strike for the same reason were subjected to physical interventions and pressure, prisoners who refused to be put in solitary cells were subjected to torture and prisoners were only allowed to buy water from the prison canteen.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners participating in alternating hunger strikes in Erzincan T and L Type Prisons for the same reason were put in single rooms, these unhygienic rooms were cleaned by prisoners on hunger strike, prisoners were allowed to ventilate for 1 hour a day, their letters were seized on the grounds of ‘providing organizational communication’ and petitions submitted by prisoners were not processed.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Elazığ High-Security Prisons No 1 and No 2, who are on alternating hunger strike for the same reason, are not given enough food and nutrients, are not allowed to social activities and books are restricted in the prison.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Malatya Akçadağ T Type Prison, who are on alternating hunger strike for the same reason, are put in single rooms and cannot benefit from social activities.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Erzurum Dumlu Prisons No 1 and 2 who participated in the alternating hunger strike for the same reason were put in single rooms, were not allowed to ventilate, disciplinary proceedings were initiated against prisoners who participated in the strike and they were banned from activities for 1 month.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Erzurum Oltu T Type Prison were given disciplinary penalties for participating in the alternating hunger strike for the same reason.
(02/195) Prevention of Right to Health in Prison…
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that hospital transfers of some ill prisoners in Diyarbakır High Security Prison No 1, who are on hunger strike demanding an end to isolation of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan in prisons across Turkey, were delayed, medical staff came to the rooms for health checks and the health checks were not performed by doctors.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that medical staff came to Diyarbakır High-Security Prison No 2 for medical check-ups of prisoners on alternating hunger strike for the same reason, but the medical check-ups were not performed by doctors, doctors could not be reached in case of need and prisoners were given different medicines than the ones prescribed by doctors.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners on alternating hunger strike in Diyarbakır Women’s Prison for the same reason were informed that they will not be referred to hospitals for a month.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that medical personnel came to Erzincan Women’s Prison for medical check-ups of prisoners on alternating hunger strike for the same reason, but the medical check-ups were not performed by doctors, there was no access to a doctor in the prison, some prisoners could not have access to right to health due to practices during transfer to hospital and blood tests of prisoners on hunger strike were not performed.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Erzincan T and L Type Prisons who went on alternating hunger strikes for the same reason were not provided with necessary vitamins, and prisoners were subjected to rights violations during hospital transfers.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners in Malatya Akçadağ T Type Prison, who went on a hunger strike for the same reason, were not provided with necessary vitamins.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners on hunger strike in Erzurum Dumlu Prisons No 1 and No 2 for the same reason were given insufficient or no reinforcements at all.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 20, 2024, that prisoners on alternating hunger strike in Erzurum Oltu T Type Prison for the same reason were not measured for blood sugar.
It is learned from the news coverage of February 21, 2024, that ill prisoners in Afyonkarahisar T Type Prison were not treated and were subjected to oral search during hospital transfers.
(02/196) Meeting Request with Abdullah Öcalan not Responded to…
It is learned that the appeal made by the lawyers on February 20, 2024, to the chief public prosecutor’s office in Bursa, to visit PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, Ömer Hayri Konar, Hamili Yıldırım and Veysi Aktaş in İmralı Prison was not responded.
(02/197) Prevention of the Activities of the Chamber of Mining Engineers…
The Chamber of Mining Engineers affiliated to the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (TMMOB) announced on February 20, 2024, that the delegation assigned by the TMMOB Chamber of Mining Engineers to investigate the landslide in a gold mine in the İliç district of Erzincan and sent to the scene on February 14, 2024, was not allowed to enter the scene and investigate the area.
(02/198) Police Raid on a Political Party Building…
On February 20, 2024, through an investigation initiated by Istanbul Büyükçekmece Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, Esenyurt District Office of Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) was raided by the police and some books, digital materials and pictures were seized after the search.
(02/199) Association Member Arrested in Istanbul…
Kalender Polat, a member of the Socialist Youth Associations Federation (SGDF) who was detained during a house raid on February 16, 2024, in the Ataşehir district of Istanbul, was arrested on February 20, 2024, on the allegations of ‘making propaganda of an illegal organization’.
(02/200) Political Party Executive on Trial in Ankara…
The trial of the case against Ömer Önen, former Central Executive Committee (MYK) member and Treasurer of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), on the charge of ‘being a member of an illegal organization’ was held at Ankara Heavy Penal Court No 18 on February 21, 2024. The court released Ömer Önen and adjourned the trial to a later date.
(02/201) Gezi Trials…
The retrial of Ali Hakan Altınay, Yiğit Ali Ekmekçi and Ayşe Mücella Yapıcı continued on February 21, 2024, at Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No 13, following the reversal of 18 years imprisonment sentence given to 17 people for the Gezi Park protests in 2013 by Penal Department No 3 of the Court of Cassation. The court decided to lift the judicial control measures against 3 people and adjourned the trial to May 22, 2024.
On April 22 and 25, 2022, the final hearing of the lawsuit filed against Ali Hakan Altınay, Yiğit Ali Ekmekçi and Ayşe Mücella Yapıcı due to the Gezi Park protests in 2013 was held at Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No 13. On September 28, 2023, the 3rd Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation overturned the 18-year prison sentence against Ali Hakan Altınay, Yiğit Ali Ekmekçi, and Ayşe Mücella Yapıcı and ruled for the release of 3 people on judicial control conditions.
(02/202) Presidential Bodyguards on Trial in Istanbul…
On February 20, 2024, the first trial of the case against the President’s bodyguards on the charge of ‘simple intentional injury’ for the torture and ill-treatment of lawyer Sertuğ Sürenoğlu in front of the Çırağan Palace in Istanbul on April 13, 2019, started at Istanbul Penal Court of First Instance No 40. The prosecutor declared his final opinion on the case and requested the case to be sent to the heavy penal court on the grounds that the accusation against the President’s bodyguards may constitute the crime of ‘torture’. The court ruled that the file should be sent to the heavy criminal court.
On April 13, 2019, lawyer Sertuğ Sürenoğlu, who asked why the road in front of Çırağan Palace in Istanbul was closed, was forced into a car by the President’s bodyguards who were at Çırağan Palace for a wedding and was subjected to torture while handcuffed behind his back and blindfolded. Sertuğ Sürenoğlu was released by the court on house arrest conditions.
(02/203) Journalists on Trial in Istanbul…
The trial of the case against journalist Haluk Kalafat and Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) courthouse reporter Elif Akgül for their news reports on the Armenian Genocide continued on February 20, 2024, at Istanbul Penal Court of First Instance No 2. The indictment demands sentence for journalists on the charge of ‘publicly degrading the Turkish nation’ under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). The court adjourned the hearing to May 9, 2024.
(02/204) Journalist on Trial in Istanbul…
The final trial of the case against journalist Neşe İdil, on the grounds of ‘making propaganda for an illegal organization’ through her social media posts, was held at Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No 22 on February 20, 2024. The court sentenced the journalist to 1 year and 3 months and deferred the announcement of the verdict.
(02/205) March 31st Elections…
On February 20, 2024, 2 anonymous persons removed the flags hanging on the DEM Party election office in the Kulu district of Konya.
On February 20, 2024, Republican People’s Party (CHP) workers who were conducting an election campaign in the Hopa district of Artvin were subjected to verbal and physical assault by anonymous people.
(02/206) Ban of Access to Web Content…
The news reports on https://www.birgun.net, https://www.dokuz8haber.net and https://bianet.org, about the judge that Diyarbakır Bar Association complained to the Council of Judges and Prosecutors, were banned from access with the decision of Sakarya Criminal Peace Judgeship No. 2 dated February 20, 2024, on the grounds of ‘violation of personal rights’.
(02/207) People Detained and Arrested in Relation with the Coup Attempt…
The Ministry of Interior announced on February 21, 2024, that 67 people were detained in operations conducted in 14 provinces.
[1]The reports on the human rights violations of the Documentation Center are claims unless they are certified. The claim of violation either is certified through thoroughly investigations of HRFT Documentation Center, including by judicial verdicts, and becomes a definite data or it is not included to the annual report.
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[5] Daily Human Rights Reports are prepared on the information gathered by the Documentation Center from its own network and the following dailies and internet portals: Vatan, Milliyet, Hürriyet, Habertürk, Evrensel, Birgün, Cumhuriyet, Fırat Haber Ajansı, Jinnews, ETHA, Mezopotamya Ajansı, Yurt, Yeni Yaşam, NTV, Yeni Asya, Bianet, Halkinsesi.tv, Cnnturk, Tr724, İleri Haber, Siyasi Haber, Alınteri, Kızılbayrak, Sendika.org, Yüksekova Haber, T24, Diken, Gazete Karınca, Gazete Duvar. Haber Sol, El Cezire, BBC, Deutsche Welle, Reuters, AFP.