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Title: Turkey Human Rights Practices, 1995
Author: U.S. Department of State
Date: March 1996
TURKEY
Turkey is a constitutional republic with a multiparty Parliament, the
Grand National Assembly, which elects the President. Suleyman Demirel
was elected President in 1993; Tansu Ciller, leader of the center-right
True Path Party, became the first female Prime Minister the same year.
Parliamentary elections in late December gave no single party a
majority. The existing coalition Government continued in caretaker
status, while efforts continued to form a new government.
For over a decade, Turkey has engaged in armed conflict with the
terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), whose stated goal is the
creation of a separate state of Kurdistan in southeastern Turkey. A
state of emergency, declared in 1987, continues in 10 southeastern
provinces where the Government faces substantial terrorist violence from
the PKK. A regional governor retains authority over those 10 provinces,
as well as 3 adjacent ones, for security matters. The state of
emergency allows the civilian governor to exercise certain quasi-martial
law powers, including restrictions on the press and removal from the
area of persons whose activities are deemed hostile to public order.
The state of emergency decree was most recently renewed in October 1995.
The Turkish National Police (TNP) are charged with maintaining public
order in the cities, a responsibility carried out by the Jandarma
(gendarmerie) in the countryside. The regular armed forces,
particularly the army, continued their lead role in combating the PKK in
the state of emergency region in the southeast, thereby taking on an
internal security function. Civilian authorities remain publicly
committed to the establishment of a state of law and respect for human
rights, but torture, excessive use of force, and other serious human
rights abuses by the security forces persisted throughout 1995.
Turkey has a primarily market-based economy driven by an active private
sector. Agriculture and industry are both important to the overall
economy. The agricultural sector employs nearly half the country's
labor force, but contributes only 15 percent of the gross national
product and total exports. The leading industrial sectors--textiles,
iron and steel--also provide the leading exports. Reforms implemented
over the past 15 years have opened the economy to global competition and
eliminated most aspects of state control. One result has been
impressive economic growth, which has translated into an improved
standard of living. In 1995 the economy recovered from the previous
year's economic crisis, although the Government had little success in
combating persistent inflation and budget deficits. While a long-
stalled privatization program picked up steam, state enterprises
continue to account for almost 40 percent of manufacturing sector
output. The conflict in the southeast continued to be a substantial
drain on the economy.
The human rights situation improved in a number of areas, but very
serious problems remain. The situation in the southeast was of
particular concern. Government security forces and the PKK continued to
forcibly evacuate and sometimes burn villages, though at a significantly
lower level than in 1994. Various sources estimate that as many as 2
million people have left their homes in the southeast over the past 7
years; village evacuations have been one significant contributing factor
and economic reasons were another. Government programs to deal with and
compensate the many internally displaced have been very inadequate. In
Tunceli province, police "special teams" harassed and mistreated
civilians. Public outcry by Members of Parliament (M.P.'s) caused the
special teams to be transferred and led to fewer abuses. There appears
to have been a substantial increase in the number of PKK terrorists who
were captured or surrendered; in the past, very few were taken alive.
The number of deaths in detention, safe house raids, "mystery killings,"
and disappearances was down considerably from 1994. Some other forms of
extrajudicial killings rose, including those associated with crowd
control situations. Torture also continued to be a very serious
problem. Police and security forces often employed torture during
periods of incommunicado detention and interrogation. Prison conditions
remained poor.
Limits on freedom of expression remained another serious problem,
although Parliament's October revision of Article 8 of the 1991 Anti-
Terror Law (which has been used frequently to limit freedom of
expression) and the subsequent court-ordered release of 143 detainees
were significant positive steps. The Government continued to use the
1991 Anti-Terror Law, with its broad and ambiguous definition of
terrorism, to detain both alleged terrorists and a broad range of people
on the charge that their acts, words, or ideas constituted dissemination
of separatist propaganda. Prosecutors also used Article 312 of the
Criminal Code (incitement to racial or ethnic enmity) with increasing
frequency. There were a number of significant acquittals in freedom of
expression cases, including novelist Yasar Kemal and American journalist
Aliza Marcus. Television programs expanded the limits on debate on
human rights and other issues of freedom of speech and the press.
On October 26, the Appeals Court announced its decision in the case of
seven former pro-Kurdish Democracy Party (DEP) Members of Parliament
(M.P.'s) and one independent who had appealed their convictions for
disseminating separatist propaganda and for supporting or being a member
of an armed band. Two of the original eight received suspended
sentences and were fined and released in 1994. The 1995 decision
affirmed the convictions of four of the M.P.'s for being members of an
armed band but overturned the convictions of two and ordered that they
be retried under the revised Article 8 of the Anti-Terror Law.
The four whose convictions were affirmed are appealing to the European
Human Rights Commission: the Government has publicly affirmed that it
will respect that body's decision. In its written ruling, the Appeals
Court stated that it was not a crime to take the parliamentary oath in
Kurdish, to wear accessories in the Kurdish colors, or to claim Turkish
as a foreign language in Parliament.
Officials of various government agencies continued to harass,
intimidate, indict, and imprison human rights monitors, journalists, and
lawyers for ideas which they expressed in public forums. Serious
prosecutions of police or security officers for extrajudicial killings
and torture continued to be rare, although the number of convictions in
torture cases increased modestly. The climate of impunity that the
relatively small number of convictions creates probably remains the
single largest obstacle to reducing unlawful killing, torture, and other
human rights abuses.
In October Parliament amended Article 8 of the Anti-Terror Law by
introducing an implied intent standard, reducing minimum and maximum
sentences, and allowing first offenses to be converted to fines. In
July Parliament passed a package of 16 constitutional amendments which
substantially broadened political participation by unions, academicians,
and students. In March the Prime Minister issued a second circular
stating the unacceptability of torture (the first was in January 1994);
the State Minister for Human Rights intervened personally in several
torture cases to ensure that they were brought to trial. The State
Minister's academic advisory committee produced a report on appropriate
interrogation methods employed in various Western countries, and the
leader of the committee stated that some of the report's recommendations
are being implemented. Human rights education in primary schools was
made mandatory; it is optional in high schools. The Government expanded
human rights training for the police and military.
In July the National Security Director announced the creation of contact
teams to act as liaison between families and their relatives who are
detained. Offices have been opened in Ankara and Istanbul, and their
telephone numbers were publicized. The offices serve those who are
detained for State Security Court crimes.
Spousal abuse remains a serious problem.
PKK terrorists murdered noncombatants, targeting village officials and
committing random murders in their effort to intimidate the populace.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom
from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
Political and extrajudicial killings credibly attributed to government
authorities and terrorist groups continued but at substantially lower
rates overall than in previous years. The number of deaths in detention
and mystery killings was down significantly in 1995. The Human Rights
Foundation of Turkey (HRF), a Turkish nongovernmental organization,
reported that 6 persons died under suspicious circumstances while in
official custody in the first 9 months of 1995, some as a result of
torture; the number for the same period in 1994 was 18. Of the 1995
deaths, officials claimed that at least two committed suicide, a claim
they have made frequently in past cases of deaths in custody. In one
such case, government officials stated that Safyettin Tepe, a
correspondent for pro-PKK Yeni Politika hanged himself from the cell
door grill with his underwear while in detention at the Bitlis security
directorate on August 25. According to Interior Ministry information,
Tepe was a PKK member. Tepe's family asked that the body be exhumed and
a second autopsy performed; the second autopsy has not yet been
performed. In the 1994 death in detention of Can Demirag, the
prosecutor did not open a case although the Istanbul prosecutor had
opened an investigation in 1994.
By law, authorities are obliged to investigate all deaths in custody.
However, there were few serious prosecutions of security force members.
Following the death of university student Sinan Demirtas in Elazig, the
police claimed that Demirtas, who was summoned to the police station on
July 21 to deal with matters related to his upcoming military service,
committed suicide in custody by banging his head against the wall.
Demirtas's family claimed that he had been tortured to death and filed a
complaint at the chief prosecutor's office. Autopsy results showed that
Demirtas died from trauma due to a heavy blow to the head. The public
prosecutor filed suit against eight policemen for causing his death by
torture. The case of police officer Abdullah Bozkurt, charged with the
murder of Vedat Han Gulsenoglu, is continuing; Bozkurt has been
reassigned from Istanbul to Van while his murder case is being
prosecuted.
A number of mystery killings, in which the assailant's identity was
unknown, also occurred, but the total was substantially lower than in
previous years. Human rights organizations maintain that security
forces were complicit in a number of these mystery killings. According
to the HRF, in the first 9 months of 1995, 98 civilians were
assassinated by unknown attackers, mostly in the east and southeast of
the country; in 1994, the number for the first 10 months was 316. Many
were leaders or prominent members of the Kurdish community, local
politicians, or members of the pro-Kurdish People's Democracy Party
(HADEP). Four trials continued against 89 members of Hizbullah, a
Turkish terrorist group not related to Islamic Hizbullah. The 89
members are charged with a total of 113 murders.
A parliamentary committee, which commenced its investigation in 1993,
completed a report on mystery killings in May, but the report was not
made public. Excerpts which appeared in the press stated that "illegal
formations" within the State bear some responsibility for mystery
killings; they must be "cleansed," the report said, and brought to
justice.
There was an increase in the number of deaths attributable to government
authorities due to excessive use of force, including during crowd
control situations. The HRF says that security forces were responsible
for 55 extrajudicial killings in the first 9 months of 1995. The HRF
states that 21 people were killed in rioting in Istanbul (see Section
2.c.). The HRF also credibly reports that government forces used
excessive force during some raids on alleged terrorist safe houses
rather than trying to arrest suspects, which resulted in 17 deaths. In
1994 the number for the first 10 months was 33.
In April, citing three deaths in a safe house raid in Ankara's Batikent
district, the State Minister for Human Rights stated that the police had
committed extrajudicial killings. A number of trials continued of
police who participated in safe house raids in which suspects died. In
two cases--one of which had been ongoing for 6 years--the police were
acquitted. In a separate case, 13 Adana policemen were acquitted of
similar charges. Prosecutors brought at least three other such cases,
including one against five policemen who participated in a September
1994 raid on a cafeteria in Istanbul's Besiktas district in which three
persons were killed.
Proceedings continued in other ongoing cases. The trial continues
concerning the death in detention in 1993 of Vakkas Dost; policeman
Nurettin Ozturk, the accused murderer, is still at large. The trial in
the 1992 case of Yucel Ozen is continuing, as is the trial of the 11
police officers in the 1992 Basalak case. The trial of five village
guards for the 1994 murder of Diyarbakir tradesman Serif Avsar
continues. No case has been opened in the 1993 fatal shooting of Mehmet
Sincar, a Democracy Party (DEP) M.P. from Mardin, in the city center of
Batman; the HRF considers it a mystery killing. In a July security
force operation against Hizbullah 11 persons were arrested; the
September murder of 4 HADEP members is among the crimes with which they
are charged. The HRF views the case of former Ankara Provincial
Chairman of (DEP predecessor) HEP, Faik Candan, found dead in December
1994, as a mystery killing. The authorities did not open a case.
There were no assassinations of journalists; however, journalist
Safyettin Tepe died in detention on August 25. According to the
Government, the murders of four journalists have been "solved:" Kemal
Kilic (killed in 1993, solved in 1994); Ibrahim Tuncay (killed in 1992,
defendant currently on trial); Namik Taranci (killed in 1992, Hizbullah
defendants currently on trial), and; Halit Gungen (killed in 1992,
solved in 1995). The murders of most well-known journalists, including
Ugur Mumcu in 1993, remain unsolved.
Unidentified terrorists committed extrajudicial killings primarily in
rural southeast Anatolia. For example, in May they perpetrated a bomb
attack at a bus stop in Batman which killed 11, including 4 children.
They also launched several deadly attacks in urban areas, including a
bombing in a cafeteria in Izmir on September 17 which killed 5 and
injured 25. Political killings perpetrated by the PKK included those of
state officials (Jandarma, local mayors, imams, and schoolteachers),
state-paid paramilitary village guards and their family members, young
villagers who refuse to be recruited, and PKK guerrillas-turned-
informants. In the years 1987-1994, 142 teachers were murdered: the
PKK killed 91, and unknown assailants another 46. In 1995 the PKK
killed three teachers.
b. Disappearance
The HRF reports three disappearances, which ended in death. However,
accurate statistics on disappearances are hard to confirm; figures for
the year varied widely. The HRF number is substantially down from 1994,
when the total for the same period was 28. Those disappearances
reported in 1994 and earlier years remained unsolved. Some persons
disappeared after witnesses reported that security forces or law
enforcement officials had taken them into custody. No one has been
formally charged in any disappearance cases.
On March 21, Hasan Ocak disappeared in the aftermath of rioting in
Istanbul's Gaziosmanpasa neighborhood (see Section 2.c.). Officials
claimed that he was not in custody, although several released suspects
claimed to have seen him. His body was found in the unidentified
persons' cemetery in Istanbul on May 16. His death appeared to be
caused by strangulation. The investigation continued at year's end.
In April a group of relatives of persons who disappeared began a series
of demonstrations in Istanbul. In June the Human Rights Association
(HRA) started a campaign on disappearances, which included
demonstrations and sit-down protests. Families of some of the
disappeared persons allege that they are themselves subjected to
torture, humiliation, and intimidation when they attempt to determine
their missing relatives' whereabouts. To combat such assertions, the
National Security Director General in July directed that "contact
groups" be established to communicate with detainees' families.
According to the Interior Ministry, in the first 8 months of 1995, 75
reports of missing persons were filed in Diyarbakir province, 46 of whom
were subsequently located alive. In Istanbul province, 322
disappearances were registered during the same period; 137 people were
located alive. Diyarbakir is a city of over 1 million inhabitants;
Istanbul, over 10 million.
The Government, human rights organizations, and the media report that
the PKK routinely kidnaps young men or threatens their families as part
of its recruiting. PKK terrorists continued their abductions of local
villagers, teachers, journalists, and officials in the southeast. On
March 31, the PKK kidnaped two photojournalists; it released them on
April 26.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment
Despite the Constitution's ban on torture, Turkey's accession to the
U.N. and European Conventions Against Torture, and public pledges by
successive governments to end torture, the practice continued. The
HRF's torture rehabilitation centers in Ankara, Izmir, Istanbul, and a
newly opened center in Adana reported that they received a total of 713
applications for treatment during the year. Human rights attorneys and
physicians who treat victims of torture say that most persons detained
for or suspected of political crimes usually suffer some torture during
periods of incommunicado detention in police stations and Jandarma
headquarters before they are brought before a court. Government
officials admit that torture occurs but deny that it is systematic.
They claim that it is closely tied to the State's fight against
terrorism. Many cases, however, occur in western Turkey, outside the
zone of conflict.
The HRF and private attorneys reported that there was neither better
treatment of those charged under the Anti-Terror Law nor an overall
decrease in the incidence of torture in 1995. The HRF stated that the
number of applications to its torture rehabilitation centers was up in
1995. That could have meant that their services were more widely known,
not necessarily that the incidence of torture was up. In 1995 women
again charged that sexual abuses occurred while under official detention
by security officials.
The implementation of the 1992 Criminal Trials Procedure Law (CMUK)
facilitated more immediate attorney access to those arrested for common
crimes (although some detainees accused of common crimes are tortured);
however, the CMUK's provisions of immediate attorney access do not apply
to those detained under the Anti-Terror Law or for other "security"
crimes. The CMUK's allowable, maximum prearraignment detention periods
exceed Council of Europe maximums.
Human rights observers report that because the arresting officer is also
responsible for interrogating the suspect, the officer may resort to
torture to obtain a confession that would justify the arrest.
Commonly employed methods of torture reported by the HRF's torture
treatment centers include: high-pressure cold water hoses, electric
shocks, beating on the soles of the feet, beating of the genitalia,
hanging by the arms, blindfolding, sleep deprivation, deprivation of
clothing, systematic beatings, and vaginal and anal rape with truncheons
and, in some instances, gun barrels. They also report treatment that
falls short of torture, such as cursing, slapping, and threats. In
March the State Minister for Human Rights listed a series of torture
methods employed in police and Jandarma stations. These included
suspension on a "Palestinian hanger" (hanging by the arms), tying
detainees to a magnetic telephone which transmits electric shocks,
blindfolding, sexual abuse, submergence in cold water, use of
truncheons, electric shocks, hanging sandbags on detainees' necks,
stripping them naked in front of their relatives, forcing them to stand
on one foot, releasing drops of water on their heads, sleep deprivation,
withholding food, forcing detainees to clean corridors and toilets,
keeping them in salty water, and forcing them to stand in cold water
below the waist.
In January in Ankara, a 12-year-old girl, detained for 5 days for
stealing bread, was tortured by beating and electric shock at the Ankara
security directorate theft desk. She later applied to the HRF for
treatment. In the 1994 Yelda Ozcan case, Istanbul's Beyoglu district
public prosecutor opened a case which continued at year's end. In April
in Kurucayir hamlet an eyewitness alleged that 20 villagers were
severely beaten by Jandarma troops. The same witness alleged that seven
other villagers were taken into a house and tortured (see Section 1.g.).
The Government maintains that medical examinations occur once during
detention and a second time before either arraignment or release.
However, former detainees asserted that some medical examinations took
place too long after the event to reveal any definitive findings.
According to the HRF, the medical examination practice varies widely.
In some cases proper examinations are conducted; in others, doctors sign
papers handed to them. Some examinations are cursory, some are done in
the presence of police officials, and some doctors are at times
pressured to submit false or misleading medical certificates that deny
evidence of torture.
The State Minister for Human Rights in September called for an
independent medical examiner's office and better forensic equipment and
training. Implementation of these recommendations was delayed by
political developments late in the year. In July the Istanbul Medical
Chamber Board suspended Taner Apaydin from the practice of medicine for
6 months for falsifying medical reports in nine torture cases.
Credible sources in the human rights and legal communities estimate that
judicial authorities investigate only about one-half of the formal
complaints involving torture and prosecute only a fraction of those.
The Anti-Terror Law provides that officials accused of torture or other
mistreatment may continue to work while under investigation and, if
convicted, may only be suspended. Special provincial administrative
boards rather than regular courts decide whether to prosecute such
cases. Suspects' legal fees are paid by their employing agencies.
Under the state of emergency, any lawsuit directed at government
authorities must be approved by the regional governor. Approval is
rare. These conditions contribute to the paucity of convictions for
torture.
Under the Administrative Adjudication Law, an administrative
investigation into alleged torture cases is conducted to determine if
there is enough evidence to bring a law enforcement officer to trial.
Under the CMUK, prosecutors are empowered to initiate investigations of
police officers or Jandarma suspected of torturing or mistreating
suspects. In cases where township security directors or Jandarma
commanders are accused of torture, the prosecutor must obtain permission
to initiate an investigation from the Ministry of Justice, because these
officials are deemed to have a status equal to that of judges.
According to the Government, in the first 7 months of 1995, 547
complaints of torture or mistreatment were filed. Of those, 337 cases
reached the stage of administrative investigation; 210 cases were
opened. There were 15 convictions and 28 acquittals. The number of
convictions is up modestly from 1994.
In instances in which law enforcement officers are convicted of torture,
sentences tend to be light. In May the Appeals Court reduced a 5-year
prison sentence imposed by the Bolvadin civil court on Hasan Belek, a
deputy chief of police, to the minimum sentence of 1 year per person
tortured, or 2 years total. The Appeals Court stated that Belek had
obtained "no personal satisfaction" from the violence; he had proceeded
"in the interest of furthering his investigation." In May an Ankara
court dismissed charges against two policemen accused of beating M.P.
Salman Kaya during a 1994 May Day demonstration for lack of "compelling
and persuasive evidence." In February, upon the intervention of the
State Minister for Human Rights, seven policemen went on trial for
allegedly torturing a suspect detained for car theft. The prosecutor
demanded prison terms of up to 5 years for each of the defendants. The
trial of six security officers accused of torturing Baki Erdogan began
in May 1994 and continues. The case brought by Nazli Top, a nurse
(pregnant at the time) who alleged she was tortured and raped with a
truncheon in 1992, ended in acquittal in 1994.
In the first 9 months of 1995, 23 complaints claiming torture or
mistreatment were filed with the Parliamentary Human Rights Commission.
In each case, the Commission wrote to the offices of the public
prosecutor, the governor, and the security directorate general. Of the
23 cases, prosecutors declared 11 inactionable because there was
insufficient evidence, and in another six, they determined that there
had been no mistreatment. In the remaining 6, prosecutors opened cases:
four continue; one police officer was acquitted; and one was convicted
of mistreatment, sentenced to 2 months and 15 days' imprisonment, and
had his civil service status suspended (the punishment was converted to
a fine).
Police continue to force women in custody and others to undergo
virginity testing even though the State Minister for Women's Affairs
condemned the practice in 1992. The tests are imposed particularly on
women who file a criminal complaint alleging a sexual crime. Although
legally only a court or a prosecutor may order them, police continue to
impose the tests on female detainees. Women may refuse the examinations
but are rarely informed of that right. In July Leman Celikaslan alleged
that she was sexually abused by anti-terror police while in custody. An
investigation is under way.
In March the Prime Minister sent a circular to law enforcement offices
on the unacceptability of torture. Successive State Ministers for Human
Rights have focused on the issue of torture and the need to end it. One
intervened directly in several cases in western Turkey to ensure that
the alleged perpetrators were brought to trial; another had his academic
advisory commission prepare a report, drawing on the laws of several
Western countries, which detailed acceptable interrogation methods. The
Government has accepted numerous visits by the Council of Europe's
Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) and is in regular dialog
with the CPT.
Torture in prisons has decreased in the last few years, but prison
conditions remain poor. Groups of inmates carried out hunger strikes to
protest poor conditions and their treatment by guards. Prisons are
overcrowded, and families often supplement the poor quality food. A
strike by 300 inmates of Buca prison near Izmir ended on February 6
following an agreement reached between the inmates and prison
authorities. Prisons are run on the ward system. Prisoners, often
those of the same ideological bent, are incarcerated together and may
punish their own. An example of this was the death in March in
Istanbul's Bayrampasa prison of Dev Sol (Devrimci Sol, a Marxist
terrorist group) prisoner Latife Ereren, who was throttled by other Dev
Sol militants for collaborating with the police. In July a search of
Istanbul's maximum security Bayrampasa prison revealed 28 mobile phones,
8 guns, 55 knives, and 50 grams of hashish. On September 21, a violent
clash between inmates and security officials in Izmir's Buca prison cost
the lives of three inmates. Several monitoring groups, both domestic
and international, carried out prison visits in 1995. A major prison
rehabilitation project scheduled to be completed in 1994 was delayed
because of internal political opposition.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
To take a person into custody, a prosecutor must issue a detention
order, except in limited circumstances such as when a person is caught
in the act of committing a crime. The detention period for those
charged with common individual crimes is 24 hours. Those detained for
common collective crimes may be held for 4 days. The detention period
may be extended for an additional 4 days. Under the CMUK, detainees are
entitled to immediate access to an attorney and may meet and confer with
the attorney at any time. In practice, this access continued for
detainees charged with common crimes. In July the bar association
temporarily stopped providing duty attorneys to deal with CMUK cases
because they were not receiving their promised reimbursement from the
Government. The problem was later resolved.
Persons detained for individual crimes which fall under the Anti-Terror
Law must be brought before a judge within 48 hours, while those charged
with crimes of a collective, political, or conspiratorial nature may be
detained for up to 15 days in most of the country and up to 30 days in
the 10 southeastern provinces under the state of emergency. Those
detained and tried for the expression of views, generally for
disseminating separatist propaganda, are charged promptly.
There is no guaranteed access to an attorney under the law for persons
whose cases fall under the jurisdiction of the State Security Courts;
these include those charged with smuggling and with crimes under the
Anti-Terror Law. This lack of access is a major factor in the
widespread use of torture by police and security forces.
The decision concerning access to counsel in such cases is left to the
independent prosecutor, who generally denies access on the grounds that
it would prejudice an ongoing investigation. The Justice and Interior
Ministries generally have not intervened in prosecutors' decisions or
police actions denying access to counsel. Although the Constitution
specifies the right of detainees to request speedy arraignment and
trial, judges have ordered a significant number detained indefinitely,
sometimes for years. Many cases involve persons accused of violent
crimes, but it is not uncommon for those accused of nonviolent political
crimes to be kept in custody until the conclusion of their trials.
By law, a detainee's next of kin must be notified "in the shortest time"
after arrest, which is observed in practice. Once formally charged by
the prosecutor, a detainee is arraigned by a judge and allowed to retain
a lawyer. After arraignment, the judge may release the accused upon
receipt of an appropriate guarantee, such as bail, or order him detained
if the court determines that he is likely to flee the jurisdiction or
destroy evidence.
Authorities detained large numbers of persons on several occasions,
including 242 at the opening of the trial of 4 HADEP members in Ankara
in June. All but 16 were released within 72 hours; the 16 have been
charged and await trial. In most such cases, the majority of detainees
are subsequently released without charges being filed. Many report
being tortured during such detentions.
There is no external exile. Turkey's internal exile law was repealed in
1987, but in 1990 the Government granted the southeast regional governor
the authority to "remove from the region," for a period not to exceed
the duration of the state of emergency (now in its ninth year), citizens
under his administration whose activities "give an impression that they
are prone to disturb general security and public order." There were no
known instances of the use of this broad authority during the year.
Human rights monitors and residents of towns in the southeast report
that officials continued to rely on "administrative transfers" to remove
government employees thought liable to "create trouble."
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution requires that judges be independent of the executive in
the discharge of their duties and provides for the security of their
tenure. The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors, which is appointed
by the President and includes the Minister of Justice, selects judges
and prosecutors for the higher courts and is responsible for oversight
of those in the lower courts. The Constitution also prohibits state
authorities from issuing orders or recommendations concerning the
exercise of judicial power. In practice, the courts generally act
independently of the executive. The judicial system is composed of
general law courts, State Security Courts, and military courts. There
is also a Constitutional Court. Most cases are prosecuted in the
general law courts, which include the civil, administrative, and
criminal courts. Appeals are heard either by the High Court of Appeals
or the Council of State. Provincial administrative boards established
under the Anti-Terror Law decide whether cases in which state officials
are accused of misconduct should be heard in criminal court. Military
courts, with their own appeals system, hear cases regarding infractions
of military law by members of the armed forces. In 1995 the military
court tried several cases of civilians charged with speech that
purportedly discouraged military service (see Section 2.a.).
State Security Courts sit in eight cities. They are composed of panels
of five members--two civilian judges, one military judge, and two
prosecutors--and try defendants accused of crimes such as terrorism,
drug smuggling, membership in illegal organizations, and espousing or
disseminating ideas prohibited by law as "damaging the indivisible unity
of the state." There are 18 such State Security Court panels. Their
verdicts may be appealed only to a specialized department of the High
Court of Appeals dealing with crimes against state security.
The Constitutional Court examines the constitutionality of laws,
decrees, and parliamentary procedural rules. However, it may not
consider "decrees with the force of law" issued under a state of
emergency, martial law, or in time of war.
Defendants normally have the right to a public trial and, under the
Constitution, can be proven guilty only in a court of law. By law, the
bar association must provide free counsel to indigents who make such a
request to the court. Costs are borne by the association. There is no
jury system; all cases are decided by a judge or a panel of judges.
Trials may last for months or years, with one or two hearings scheduled
each month.
Defense lawyers generally have access to the independent prosecutor's
files after arraignment and prior to trial (a period of several weeks).
In cases involving violations of the Anti-Terror Law and a few others,
such as insulting the President or "defaming Turkish citizenship,"
defense attorneys may be denied access to files which the State asserts
deal with national intelligence or security matters.
In 1995 State Security Courts predominantly handled cases under the
Anti-Terror Law and Section 312 of the Criminal Code, which prohibits
"incitement to racial enmity." The State claims that these courts were
established to try efficiently those suspected of certain crimes. Those
accused of crimes falling under the jurisdiction of these courts may be
detained twice as long before arraignment as other defendants. The
heavy caseload often means that cases drag on for years. These courts
may hold closed hearings and may admit testimony obtained during police
interrogation in the absence of counsel. The trial of 12 Diyarbakir
lawyers charged with acting as couriers for the PKK continues at the
Diyarbakir State Security Court. The trial of nine Erzurum lawyers
charged with similar crimes continues as well. None of the attorneys is
under arrest.
In law and in practice, the legal system does not discriminate against
either minorities or women, with the following caveats. As legal
proceedings are conducted solely in Turkish, and the quality of
interpreters varies, some Kurdish-speaking defendants may be seriously
disadvantaged. And although women receive equal treatment in a court of
law, some discriminatory laws remain on the books (although most have
been rendered inoperative by a Constitutional Court decision).
Turkey recognizes the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights
and the European Commission on Human Rights. Turkish citizens may file
applications alleging violations of the European Convention for the
Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms with the Commission.
Fifty-four cases have been declared admissible before the Commission.
There is no reliable estimate of the number of political prisoners, but
some human rights groups alleged that many of those arrested could
correctly be categorized as such. The Government claims that most
alleged political prisoners are in fact security detainees, suspected of
being members of, or assisting, the PKK or other terrorist
organizations. According to government statistics, during the first 9
months of 1995, 5,893 persons were under arrest charged with offenses
under the Anti-Terror Law, and 2,861 had been convicted.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The Constitution provides for the inviolability of a person's domicile
and the privacy of correspondence and communication. Government
officials may enter a private residence or intercept or monitor private
correspondence only upon issuance of a judicial warrant. These
provisions are generally respected in practice outside the state of
emergency region.
A judge must decide whether to issue a search warrant for a residence.
If delay may cause harm, prosecutors and municipal officers authorized
to carry out prosecutors' instructions may conduct a search. Searches
of private premises may not be carried out at night, unless the delay
will be damaging or the search will result in the capture of a prisoner
at large. Exceptions include persons under special observation by the
Security Directorate General, places anyone can enter at night, places
where criminals gather, places where materials obtained through the
commission of crimes are kept, gambling establishments, and brothels.
In the 10 provinces under emergency rule, the regional governor can and
does empower security authorities to search without a warrant residences
or the premises of political parties, businesses, associations, or other
organizations. According to the bar association, it is not
constitutional for security authorities in these provinces to search,
hold, or seize without warrant persons or documents. Roadblocks are
commonplace in the southeast; security officials regularly search
vehicles and travelers.
Security forces have compelled the evacuation of villages in the
southeast to prevent villagers from giving aid and comfort to the PKK
(see Section 1.g.). The Government admits to village and hamlet
evacuations but claims that they occur as the consequence of pressures
by and fear of the PKK and because security operations against the PKK
in the region make continued occupancy unsafe.
g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian Law in
Internal Conflicts
Since 1984 the separatist PKK has waged an increasingly violent
terrorist insurgency that has claimed over 17,000 lives. The PKK's
campaign of violence in southeast Turkey is directed against both
security forces and civilians, almost all of whom are Kurds, whom the
PKK accuses of cooperating with the State. The TNP, Jandarma, and armed
forces, in turn, have waged an intense campaign to suppress terrorism,
targeting active PKK units as well as persons they believe support or
sympathize with the PKK. In the process, they have committed many human
rights abuses. According to then-emergency region governor Unal Erkan,
between July 1987 and October 1, 1995, a total of 17,739 persons lost
their lives. This includes 10,632 PKK, 3,259 security force members,
and 3,848 civilians. Parliament extended until July the "Repentance
Law," pursuant to which members of terrorist organizations who turn
state's evidence could have their sentences decreased or annulled.
Civilians and M.P.'s for Tunceli province in July charged police special
teams with harassing and mistreating civilians there. The National
Security Director instituted an investigation into the charges and
ordered a number of the special team members reassigned to other posts.
Although no charges appear to have been brought against special team
members for abuses, the public attention to this issue seems to have
resulted in fewer abuses by the remaining special teams.
Government security forces forcibly evacuated and sometimes burned
villages. The Government's stated purpose was to protect civilians or
prevent PKK guerrillas from obtaining logistical support from the
inhabitants. Some villagers told reliable sources that security forces
had evacuated them for refusing to participate in the paramilitary
village guard system. According to the Interior Minister, as of March,
2,297 villages had been evacuated or burnt down. In July the emergency
region governor stated that 987 villages and 1,676 hamlets (settlement
units of 3 or 4 houses) had been depopulated "for various reasons,"
including residents evacuated by security forces for security reasons;
residents who left of their own accord for security or economic reasons;
and residents who left because of PKK pressure. The PKK burned some
villages to seek revenge on paramilitary village guards.
As many as 2 million persons have been displaced. Government programs
to deal with and compensate the many internal migrants have been very
inadequate. Many migrants are living in overcrowded quarters with
relatives in the larger cities in the southeast. Apparently as a result
of serious overall budgetary problems, much 1994 aid promised by the
Government was not disbursed, and there was little provision for
assistance in the 1995 budget.
In July the State Minister for Human Rights announced a government
emergency aid program to be applied in 22 provinces in the east and
southeast and more economic support to the region. To date, few
villages have been resettled. According to statistics provided by the
Foreign Ministry, a total of $5.7 million (TL 287 billion) of various
forms of aid (housing, food, clothing, health, and education) has been
provided to 32,260 citizens in the southeast.
There appears to have been a substantial increase in the number of PKK
terrorists taken alive or who have turned themselves in; in the past,
very few were taken alive.
There are credible allegations that serious abuses during the course of
operations against the PKK continue. A former infantry soldier has
alleged that he witnessed Jandarma troops severely beat 20 villagers in
Kurucayir hamlet on April 19. Seven other villagers were later beaten
more severely, according to this witness (see Section 1.c.). The
witness states that the incident occurred in the presence of the general
officer commanding all forces in the southeast. The Government confirms
that a military operation against the PKK did take place in that general
area on April 14 but disputes some of the eyewitness's statement.
The Government organizes, arms, and pays for a civil defense force in
the southeast known as the village guards. Participation in this
paramilitary militia by local villagers is theoretically voluntary, but
villagers are caught between the two sides. If the villagers agree to
serve, the PKK may target them and their village. If the villagers
refuse to participate, government security forces may retaliate against
them and their village. The village guards have a reputation for being
the least disciplined of the Government's security forces and have been
accused of repeated human rights abuses.
According to a report released by the Turkish Medical Doctors'
Association, in some instances, physicians have been prosecuted in State
Security Courts for giving medical care to alleged PKK terrorists, a
practice that could deter other physicians from extending such aid. Dr.
Ilken Diken, convicted of failing to report that he had aided a
terrorist as well as of aiding terrorists in 1994, remains in prison.
Government state of emergency decree 430, codified in 1990 and most
recently renewed in November 1995, imposes stringent security measures
in the southeast. The regional governor may censor news, ban strikes or
lockouts, and impose internal exile (see Section 1.d.). The decree also
provides for doubling the sentences of those convicted of cooperating
with separatists. Informants and convicted persons who cooperate with
the State are eligible for rewards and reduced sentences. Only limited
judicial review of the regional governor's administrative decisions is
permitted.
Although schools have remained open in most urban centers, rapid
population migration due in part to village evacuations and fear of
terrorism has led to severe overcrowding and chronic teacher shortages,
particularly in urban centers in the southeast. Government officials
claim a significant effort is being made both to reopen schools which
were closed during the 1994-95 school year and to build new schools in
regions faced with acute school overcrowding. For example, the
Diyarbakir governor reports that more than one-third of the 600 schools
closed in 1994 in Diyarbakir province have reopened. In addition, 12
new schools in Diyarbakir opened in September. For the 1994-95 school
year, according to the Education Minister, 119 schools were closed in
eastern and southeastern Turkey, while 98 opened.
On March 20, some 35,000 Turkish troops moved into northern Iraq to
destroy the infrastructure, disrupt the supply lines, and capture the
weapons of the PKK bases there (see Iraq report for details).
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press. Changes
to Article 8 of the Anti-Terror Law, the article that prohibits
dissemination of separatist propaganda, caused the courts to review
hundreds of cases. By year's end, courts had ordered 143 prisoners
released, either because their sentences were shortened under the
revised law or because they had no intent to promote separatism.
However, throughout the year the Government continued to restrict
constitutional freedoms providing for freedom of speech and the press.
The press is generally free to criticize government leaders or policies
and, except for certain issues concerning the southeast, it exercises
this freedom. The Criminal Code, however, provides penalties for those
who "insult the President, the Parliament, and the Army." Judges
generally examine evidence rigorously and dismiss many charges brought
under these laws. However, an Ankara civil court ordered Motherland
Party Deputy Chairman Ekrem Pakdemirli to pay approximately $100,000 (TL
5 billion) in damages to President Demirel in a libel suit for insulting
the President during a press conference.
Numerous provisions in various laws restrict freedom of expression to
one degree or another; those most frequently employed include Article 8
of the Anti-Terror Law and Article 312 of the Criminal Code. The Press
Law permits prosecutors to halt distribution of a newspaper or magazine
without a court order and requires that each publication's "responsible
editors" bear legal responsibility for the publication's content. Many
editors have faced repeated criminal proceedings.
On November 8, the Ankara Public Prosecution Office brought criminal
charges under Article 159/3 of the Criminal Code for the article "We
Protect Human Rights with an Imperfect Constitution and Laws," which
appears in a book published by the HRF entitled "A Present to Emil
Galip Sandalci." This Criminal Code article states that "those who
publicly insult laws of the Turkish Republic and the decisions of the
Grand National Assembly are sentenced to 15 days to 6 months in prison."
Turgut Inal, author of the article, was charged, along with the entire
HRF board of directors; the first hearing is scheduled for January 1996.
In February the Istanbul State Security Court charged prominent Turkish
novelist Yasar Kemal in connection with his article, published in the
German news magazine Der Spiegel, which was later reprinted in Turkey in
a book entitled "Freedom of Expression." Kemal was charged both under
Article 8 of the Anti-Terror Law and with inciting to racial or ethnic
enmity under Article 312 of the Criminal Code. The trial began in May;
the court acquitted Kemal in December, finding that he had no intention
of promoting separatism or racial enmity. To make a political point,
1,000 writers and intellectuals, 99 of whom are on trial at the Istanbul
State Security Court, claimed responsibility for the book in which the
article appeared. Their trial continued at the end of the year. In
July the Istanbul State Security Court indicted Reuter reporter and U.S.
citizen Aliza Marcus under Article 312 of the Criminal Code in
connection with a November 1994 Reuter article on village evacuations in
Tunceli province. The Court acquitted Marcus in November.
Court proceedings were also instituted against a number of editors and
publishers. The Anti-Terror Law, as revised, now contains an implied
intent standard. Previously, defendants could be charged and convicted
"regardless of the method, intention, and ideas behind" what they wrote.
The revised Article 8 language provides that "written and oral
propaganda...aiming at damaging the indivisible unity of the
State...(is) forbidden." As such, it continues to restrict freedom of
speech. Both the old and revised versions have been used against
writers, journalists, publishers, politicians, musicians, and students.
Increasingly, prosecutors applied Article 312 of the Criminal Code,
which forbids "incitement to racial or ethnic enmity." Ismail Besikci
served 10 years in prison between 1971 and 1987 for his publications on
the Kurdish question in Turkey. He now has been in prison since
November 1993, and there are numerous Article 8 cases outstanding
against him which the courts are reviewing under the revised Article 8
language.
The High Court of Appeals heard the appeal of seven pro-Kurdish former
DEP M.P.'s and one independent M.P., convicted in 1994 on charges
ranging from disseminating separatist propaganda to supporting or being
a member of an armed band or gang. In October the court affirmed the
15-year sentences of four of the defendants for being members of a
terrorist group. It overturned the sentences of Ahmet Turk and Sedat
Yurtdas, who are to be retried on Article 8 charges. It ordered the
trial court to adjust the fines of the two who had been released in 1994
for time already served in detention. The four whose sentences were
affirmed will appeal to the European Commission of Human Rights; the
Government has pledged to abide by its decision.
Independent deputy Hasan Mezarci was tried for insulting Ataturk. In
February the Bandirma Criminal Court dropped the charges. In October
Ibrahim Askoy, honorary chairman of the Democracy and Transformation
Party, was arrested on an earlier conviction for disseminating
separatist propaganda upon his return to Turkey. After the changes to
Article 8, the court ordered his sentence reduced from 20 to 10 months.
Two other Article 8 sentences, totaling 4 years, remain outstanding
against Askoy.
In January trade union chairman Munir Ceylan, convicted of disseminating
separatist propaganda, finished 15 months of a 20-month sentence and was
released. In May Dr. Fikret Baskaya ended a similar term and was
released. Professor Haluk Gerger was released from prison in October
after paying the fine that accompanied his sentence. In the case of the
former mayor of Diyarbakir, Mehdi Zana, the State Security Court in
November reduced to 2 years his Article 8 sentence which had been based
on testimony Zana had given to the human rights subcommittee of the
European Parliament; it released him for time served. In May trade
union chairman Atilay Aycin started serving a 20-month sentence in
connection with a speech he delivered during a December 1992 HRA-
organized meeting in Istanbul. The court ordered him released in
November based on the changes to Article 8. One faculty member was
convicted under the Anti-Terror Law and spent a short time in prison.
Military courts tried several cases against journalists and antiwar
activists whose activities were alleged to discourage compulsory
military service. In August these courts convicted Arif Hikmet
Iyidogan, Mehmet Sefa Fersal, and Gokhan Demirkiran, members of the War
Opponents' Association, under Article 155 of the Criminal Code and
sentenced them to between 2 and 6 months in prison. In April the
military court of appeals overturned the trial court decision of a 5-
month sentence against well-known journalist Mehmet Ali Birand and two
others for a television program on military service during which
military personnel spoke; the trial court renewed the conviction in
July. The case is again on appeal. In June the military trial court
convicted actress and musician Bilgesu Erenus and sentenced her to 2
months' imprisonment for saying "Mothers, do not send your sons to the
army," at a 1993 meeting. The military appeals court affirmed the
sentence in November and ordered Erenus to serve 24 days.
Throughout the year, State Security Court prosecutors ordered the
confiscation of numerous issues of leftist, pro-Kurdish, and pro-PKK
periodicals, although most continue to publish. Many editions of pro-
Kurdish periodicals were seized before they could be distributed
nationally to newsstands. Pro-PKK newspaper Ozgur Ulke and its
successor Yeni Politika were both closed by court order; Ozgur Ulke in
February, Yeni Politika in August. A successor, Demokrasi, began
publishing in December. According to credible press reports, over the
past year 1,443 publications (56 books, 784 journals, 602 newspapers,
and 1 bulletin) were confiscated on court order.
Legislative reforms in 1991 partially removed the ban on the use of the
Kurdish language. Kurdish-language cassettes and publications on
Kurdish subjects continued to be widely available, although suppression
continued. Courts closed the Kurdish-language weekly, Welat, which
reopened under the name Welate Me. Potential customers are afraid to
purchase Kurdish-language materials because possession of such items may
be interpreted as evidence of PKK sympathies. Kurdish-language
broadcasts are still illegal. Pro-PKK "Med TV" now broadcasts from
England daily and can be received by satellite dish in the southeast.
Turkish press coverage of the situation in the southeast tended to be
unreliable, underreporting in some instances and grossly
sensationalizing in others. Government decree 430 requires self-
censorship of all news reporting from or about the southeast, and, upon
the request of the regional governor, gives the Interior Ministry the
authority to ban distribution of any news viewed as misrepresenting
events in the region. In the event such a government warning is not
obeyed, the decree provides for a 10-day suspension of operations for a
first offense and 30 days for subsequent offenses.
In August Ankara university professor Dogu Ergil published a thorough
study on the problems in the southeast entitled "The Eastern Question"
which the Ankara State Security Court prosecutor's office concluded on
December 6 was not actionable. During the year, numerous politicians
and academicians spoke out in favor of greater freedom of expression.
A few journalists have challenged government control over media reports
from the southeast. In late summer Fatih Altayli, a journalist who
works for Hurriyet and for Show TV, visited Tunceli province and
investigated allegations against security forces and one special police
unit in particular. He wrote about his impressions and allegations in
the daily newspaper and broadcast them on his talk show program,
following which the National Security Director agreed to appear live on
his program to respond to the allegations.
The media are generally both free and freewheeling. While the overall
readership of the daily press is not large for a country of 60 million,
the newspaper business is intensely competitive and often
sensationalist. Radio and television have experienced explosive growth
in the 4 years since privately owned broadcasting has been allowed,
although all of the new stations are not yet fully legal. The
electronic media reach nearly every adult, and their influence is
correspondingly great.
In April 1994, Parliament passed regulatory legislation making it
illegal for broadcasters to threaten the country's unity or national
security and limiting the private broadcast of television programs in
languages other than Turkish. As of August, there were some 150
registered television stations, 18 of which broadcast nationwide, and 68
registered radio stations, 33 of which broadcast nationwide. Other
television and radio stations broadcast without an official license.
The increasing availability of satellite dishes and cable allows access
to foreign broadcasts, including several Turkish-language private
channels. There is no prohibition on the receipt of foreign
publications nor jamming of radio broadcasts.
Until July the Constitution and the law governing political parties had
proscribed student and faculty involvement in political activities, but
constitutional amendments passed by Parliament on July 23 now allow
students ages 18 years or older and professors to participate in
political activities.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for freedom of assembly, but authorities may
deny permission if they believe the gathering is likely to disrupt
public order. Prior notification of gatherings is required, and
authorities may restrict meetings to designated sites.
Police crowd control appears to have improved, despite the Gaziosmanpasa
riots (see Section 5). However, in June a demonstration by garbage
workers protesting their dismissal from jobs at Istanbul's Sisli
municipality turned violent when police attempted to prevent the
workers' protest march. During the 30-minute clash, 17 workers and 11
police officers were wounded. There were accusations of excessive use
of force.
Adana province has seen a marked improvement in police handling of
protest gatherings and demonstrations. In most instances, police have
shown restraint and professionalism in such situations. One significant
exception occurred on August 11, when a protest in Adana turned violent
after police prevented protesters from marching to a government
building. While demonstrators chanted antigovernment slogans, police
attempted to disperse the group by force, beating and kicking many of
the protesters. Dozens were injured and sent to hospitals, and more
than 50 demonstrators were arrested. All were subsequently released
without being charged.
Until July associations and labor unions were prohibited by law from
having ties to political parties or engaging in political activities
(see Section 6.a.). With Parliament's passage of the constitutional
amendments package, associations and labor unions may now engage in
political activities. They did so in the December elections.
Police raided a number of associations and organizations and harassed
some of their members (see Section 4). Associations must submit their
charters for government approval, a lengthy and cumbersome process.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution establishes Turkey as a secular state and provides for
freedom of belief, freedom of worship, and private dissemination of
religious ideas. The Government generally observed these provisions in
practice. About 99 percent of the population is Muslim. Under the law,
religious services may take place only in designated places of worship.
In late 1994, a Protestant group--although not a recognized minority--
was granted permission to open a house of worship in Adana.
Although Turkey is a secular state, religious instruction in state
schools is compulsory for Muslims. Upon written verification of their
non-Muslim background, Lausanne Treaty minorities (Greek, Armenian, and
Jewish) are exempted by law from Muslim religious instruction, although
students who wish to attend may do so with parental consent. Syriac
Christians are not officially exempt because they are not a Lausanne
Treaty minority.
Turkey's Alawi Muslim minority (an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam) is
estimated to number at least 12 million. There are, however, no
government-salaried Alawi religious leaders, in contrast to Sunni
religious leaders, and no Religious Affairs Directorate funds go to the
Alawi community. Some Alawis allege informal discrimination in the form
of failure to include any Alawi doctrines or beliefs in religious
instruction classes. Alawis are disgruntled by what they regard as the
Sunni bias in the Religious Affairs Directorate and the Directorate's
tendency to view the Alawis as a cultural group rather than religious
group. In September representatives of the Haci Bektas Veli cultural
association, an Alawi cultural organization, termed obligatory religious
courses in schools antidemocratic and antisecular and proposed that
religion courses be elective.
Many prosecutors regard proselytizing and religious activism on the part
of either Islamic extremists or evangelical Christians with suspicion,
especially when they deem such activities to have political overtones.
Since there is no law prohibiting proselytizing, police sometimes arrest
Islamic extremists and evangelical Christians for disturbing the peace.
Courts usually dismiss such charges, then order such persons deported.
Generally they are able to reenter the country easily.
Most religious minorities are concentrated in Istanbul. The number of
Christians in the south has been declining as the younger generation
leaves for Europe and North America. The status of three minorities--
Armenians, Jews, and Greeks--was recognized under the Lausanne Treaty.
Other religions may not acquire additional property for churches. The
Catholic Church in Ankara, for example, is confined to diplomatic
property. The State must approve the operation of churches,
monasteries, synagogues, schools, and charitable religious foundations,
such as hospitals and orphanages.
Turkish authorities carefully monitor the activities of Eastern Orthodox
and Armenian churches and their affiliated operations. The Ecumenical
Patriarchate in Istanbul has consistently expressed interest in
reopening the seminary on the island of Halki in the Sea of Marmara.
The seminary has been closed since the 1970's when the State
nationalized all private institutions of higher learning, and the
Government has used a variety of arguments to keep it closed. Armenian
church officials complain of petty harassment from local officials, such
as delays or refusals in receiving building permits.
Bureaucratic procedures relating to historic preservation impede repairs
to some religious facilities. Under the law, religious buildings that
become "extinct" (because of prolonged absence of clergy or lay persons
to staff local religious councils) revert to government possession.
Some non-Muslim minorities, particularly the Eastern Orthodox and, to a
lesser extent, the shrinking Armenian Orthodox and Jewish communities,
are faced with the danger of losing some of their houses of worship.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel,
Emigration, and Repatriation
Citizens generally enjoy freedom of movement within Turkey and the
freedom to travel abroad. The Constitution provides that a citizen's
freedom to leave may be restricted only by the national economic
situation, civic obligations (military service, for example), or
criminal investigation or prosecution. Each citizen traveling abroad
(except those regularly working abroad and those traveling for the
Government on official business) must pay a $100 departure tax. In June
Parliament passed a law that allows Turks living abroad and naturalized
in their country of residence to retain their civil rights in Turkey.
Travel in the southeast often is restricted for security reasons.
Roadblocks, set up by both Turkish security forces and the PKK, can
seriously impede travel in the region. On April 28, security forces
declared a military zone for 6 months in northeastern Kars province to
prevent PKK infiltration.
When Turkey ratified the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of
Refugees, it accepted the option of accepting the Convention's
obligations only with respect to refugees from Europe. It has not
subsequently lifted the geographic limitation of its treaty obligation.
As a result, Turkey does not recognize non-European asylum seekers as
refugees.
The Government requires non-European asylum seekers to register with
authorities within 5 days of entering the country. The Government
screens these applicants, determines those it considers bona fide, and
then refers them to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for
resettlement. Between January and mid-October, the Government deported
to their home countries 33 Iranians and 26 Iraqis whom the UNHCR
determined met international refugee criteria, but whom the Government
did not consider bona fide asylum seekers. It deported an additional 12
Iranians and a number of Iraqis who wished to apply for temporary asylum
without giving them the opportunity to do so.
Estimates of the number of Bosnians in Turkey range between 10,000 and
20,000. The majority continue to live outside organized camps. As
"guests" they have no restriction on the period they are allowed to
remain in Turkey. They are not allowed to work or attend school;
however, many do work and some children do attend school.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to
Change Their Government
According to the Constitution, citizens have the right and ability to
change their government peacefully. Turkey has a multiparty
parliamentary system, in which elections are held at least every 5 years
on the basis of mandatory universal suffrage for all citizens aged 21
and over. In July the voting age was lowered to 18. As of October, at
least 25 political parties were operating in Turkey, 10 of which were
represented in Parliament. The Grand National Assembly (Parliament)
elects the President as head of state every 7 years, or when the
incumbent becomes incapacitated or dies.
The Government neither coerces nor forbids membership in any political
organization, although the Constitutional Court may close down political
parties for unconstitutional activities. One very small party was
closed in 1995.
Until July constitutional provisions forbade students, university
faculty members, and trade unionists from active participation in party
politics. The constitutional amendment package Parliament passed on
July 23 lifted those restrictions and broadened the scope for political
participation by such persons.
Several political parties complained that the 7-day period provided to
register for the December elections was inadequate and that bureaucratic
obstacles and long registration lines discouraged or prevented many from
registering. There was particular concern that the 1 to 2 million
persons displaced since the last census of 1990 were not provided with
adequate time or assistance for registration and that their views were
not, therefore, reflected in the election results. There were some
complaints of voting irregularities in rural areas of the southeast.
Even if substantiated, these irregularities do not appear to have been
sufficient to alter the outcome.
There are no restrictions in law against women or minorities voting or
participating in politics. The Constitution calls for equal political
rights for men and women. However, only 8 women representing 3 parties
were elected to the 450-member Parliament in 1991, and 13 were elected
to an expanded 550-seat Parliament in the December elections. In
addition to Prime Minister Ciller, there was one female cabinet
minister. Some political parties now recruit female delegates for their
party conferences and electoral lists. Women's committees are active
within political party organizations. Formation of formal youth and
women's wings, formerly prohibited by the Constitution, was legalized
with the passage of the constitutional amendments package.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
The nongovernmental Human Rights Association, officially approved in
1987, has branches in 50 provincial capitals. As of October,
authorities had closed all branches in the southeast except one. The
HRA claims a membership of about 20,000. In 1990 the HRA established
its companion Human Rights Foundation which, in addition to operating
torture rehabilitation centers in Ankara, Izmir, and Istanbul and a
newly opened center in Adana, serves as a clearinghouse for human rights
information. Other indigenous nongovernmental organizations include the
Istanbul-based Helsinki Citizens Assembly, the Ankara-based Turkish
Democracy Foundation, and human rights centers at a number of
universities.
Government agents have harassed human rights monitors, as well as
lawyers and doctors involved in documenting human rights violations.
Some of these monitors have reported receiving death threats from
unknown parties. A number of human rights monitors have been
aggressively prosecuted. In November the Ankara prosecutor's office
brought criminal charges against the HRF for its publication of a book
entitled "A Gift to Emil Galip Sandalci" (see Section 2.a.). In
December 1994, HRF president Yavuz Onen and Fevzi Argun, head of the
HRF's documentation center, were tried for using allegedly separatist
language in the booklet "File of Torture." They were acquitted in
January along with four defendants from the HRA who had been indicted
for their report entitled "A Cross-Section of Burned-Down Villages."
In February a trial opened at the Diyarbakir State Security Court
against four members of the board of the Diyarbakir branch of the HRA
who were accused of aiding the PKK; the case focuses mainly on the
publication of the booklet "Emergency Situation--1992." The trial
continues; in April the defendants were released from detention. The
case of three other HRA members was later joined to that case. The HRA
representative in Hakkari, Abdulkerim Demirer, is on trial for being a
member of a terrorist organization.
Some government officials, including some prosecutors and police,
punitively apply various laws to restrict the HRA's activities. For
example, officials ordered various branches of the HRA closed for
periods of weeks or months generally on charges that they had violated
the Associations Law through publication of a press statement or of
allegedly separatist material (see Section 2.b.). Several HRA officials
in southeastern Turkey said that they are routinely kept under
surveillance by security personnel. The Adana HRA branch, which
provincial authorities closed in September 1994, reopened in February
after the public prosecutor dropped charges against the organization.
On July 24, police raided the HRA branch in Malatya, which was preparing
to launch a public campaign protesting past disappearances of detainees
in police custody. Police seized documents and shut down the office. It
remained closed at year's end.
Since 1991 Parliament has had a Human Rights Commission. The Commission
is authorized to oversee compliance with the human rights provisions of
domestic law and international agreements to which Turkey is a
signatory, investigate alleged abuses, and prepare reports. Underfunded
and lacking the power to subpoena witnesses or documents, the Commission
has been ineffective. An August 1994 initiative to establish a human
rights advisory department connected to the Prime Ministry never
materialized.
While representatives of diplomatic missions who wish to monitor the
state of human rights are free to speak with private citizens, security
police may place such visitors in the southeast and the east under
surveillance, and the presence of security officials may intimidate
those interviewed. In 1995 high-level visitors obtained most of the
appointments they requested.
In June government officials declared Amnesty International researcher
Helmut Oberdiek persona non grata and deported him. They based the
order on security instructions dated August 10 and December 14, 1994,
which stated that Oberdiek was not permitted to enter Turkey. Officials
did not harm Oberdiek, but they made copies of his notes. Also in June,
Human Rights Watch/Helsinki (HRW) announced that it was suspending one
particular mission to Turkey because of a statement by the Interior
Minister, in which he purported to speak for Human Rights
Watch/Helsinki. HRW completed a separate research project in June/July
on human rights abuses involving foreign supplied arms without
interference from authorities.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability,
Language, or Social Status
The Constitution proclaims Turkey to be a secular state, regards all
citizens as equal, and prohibits discrimination on ethnic, religious, or
racial grounds. The Government officially recognizes only those
religious minorities mentioned in the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), which
guarantees the rights of Eastern Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, and
Jewish adherents. Despite constitutional provisions, discrimination
remains a problem in several areas.
Women
Spousal abuse is a serious and widespread problem. However, it is still
considered an extremely private matter, involving societal notions of
family honor. Few women go to the police, who in any case are reluctant
to intervene in domestic disputes and frequently advise women to return
to their husbands. Turks of either sex may file civil or criminal
charges but rarely do so. A combination of laws and ingrained societal
notions make it difficult to prosecute sexual assault or rape cases. By
law, penalties may be reduced if a woman was not a virgin prior to a
rape. Penalties may also be reduced if a judge deems the woman to have
acted provocatively.
According to a study made public in May by the Prime Ministry's Family
Research Institute, the two most frequent forms of violence against
women in the home are beating and cursing. The study claims that 84
percent of women interviewed reported having been cursed and 78.9
percent beaten. In addition, 29.3 percent reported threats; 17.5
percent economic pressure; and 9.1 percent sexual violence. According
to women's responses, physical violence was used in 29.6 percent of
families; according to the men, in 34 percent.
There are several shelters for battered women, and at least two
consultation centers, Istanbul's Purple Roof Foundation and Ankara's
Altindag center city shelter. In January the Altindag municipality
attempted to close down the Altindag consultation center and shelter to
regain the building; the Purple Roof Foundation was forced to move for
the same reason.
The Civil Code, which prohibits granting gender-based privileges or
rights, retains some discriminatory provisions concerning marital rights
and obligations. Because the husband is the legal head of household,
the wife automatically acquires the husband's surname with marriage; the
husband is authorized to choose the domicile and represents the conjugal
unit. As parents, husband and wife exercise their rights jointly, but
when they disagree, the husband's view prevails. Women's groups have
lobbied to change this provision. Divorce law requires that the
divorcing spouses divide their property according to property registered
in each spouse's name. Because in most cases property is registered in
the husband's name, this can create difficulties for women who wish to
divorce. Under inheritance laws, a widow generally receives one-fourth
of the estate.
The illiteracy rate for women is approximately 29 percent, some 10
percent higher than that of the population as a whole. Particularly in
urban areas, women continue to improve their position, including in the
professions, business, and the civil service, although they continue to
face discrimination to varying degrees. Numerous women have become
lawyers, doctors, and engineers since the 1960's. Women comprise about
36 percent of the work force; approximately 80 percent of working women
are employed in agriculture. They generally receive equal pay for equal
work in the professions, business, and civil service jobs, although a
large percentage of women employed in agriculture and in the trade,
restaurant, and hotel sectors work as unpaid family help. Women may
take the examination required to become a subgovernor. Several have
been appointed subgovernors; one governor is a woman.
Independent women's groups and women's rights associations exist, but
the concept of lobbying for women's rights has not gained currency.
Children
The Government is committed to furthering children's welfare and works
to expand opportunities in education and health, including further
reduction of the infant mortality rate. The State Minister for Women's
and Family Issues oversees implementation of the Government's programs
for children. Traditional family values in rural Turkey place a greater
emphasis on advanced education for sons than for daughters. Far fewer
girls than boys continue their education after primary school.
There are some instances of child beating and abuse, as illustrated by
the case of a young child whose abuse and death the newspaper Cumhuriyet
documented in March. A report released in May by the Prime Ministry's
Family Research Institute stated that, in families where violence was
used against the wife, there was approximately a 46 percent chance that
the children would be beaten, too.
Children have suffered greatly from the cycle of violence in the
southeast. School closings in the southeast and the migration of many
families, forced or voluntary, have uprooted children to cities which
are hard pressed to find the resources to extend basic, mandatory
services, such as schooling. Many cities in the southeast are operating
schools on double shifts, with as many as 100 students per classroom.
The Government is establishing regional boarding schools to help combat
this problem, but these are insufficient. In practice, in rural
Anatolia and the southeast, the literacy rate for girls is very low, and
many do not complete primary school. The literacy rate for boys, most
of whom complete primary school, is higher. Some continue on to middle
and high school, for which they generally must travel or live away from
home.
In January Turkey ratified the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the
Child; Parliament had not yet passed implementing legislation by year's
end.
People with Disabilities
Legislation dealing with the disabled is piecemeal, and there is little
legislation regarding accessibility for the disabled. Certain
categories of employers are required to hire disabled persons as 2
percent of their employee pool, although there is no penalty for failure
to comply.
Religious Minorities
There were several instances of religiously motivated violence by
alleged nationalists, including the beating in February of eight
students at Istanbul's Marmara University for eating during the Muslim
fasting month of Ramadan. In July the head of the bar association in
Gumushane was murdered by a man angry about a ban on female lawyers
wearing headscarves in court.
In March in Istanbul, two instances of religiously motivated rioting
occurred in two heavily Alawi neighborhoods of Istanbul. The combined
death toll of the Gaziosmanpasa riots was around 30. Although the
rioting appeared to be sectarian, it was not aimed at Sunni
institutions. Rather, it appeared to reflect Alawis' desire for the
State to do more to defend secularism in Turkey and counter the threat
they perceive from resurgent Sunni extremism.
The Jewish community is well integrated into Turkish society, although
it fears the possibility of rising Islamic extremism. The only problem
the Jewish community reported in 1995 was a car bombing in Ankara in
April, which targeted the head of Ankara's tiny Jewish community. He
escaped with minor injuries.
During the last few years, there have been instances of graffiti, stones
tossed over the walls, and press attacks on the Ecumenical Patriarchate
and the Patriarch. The Armenian Patriarchate has reported similar
attacks against Armenian churches in Istanbul, and Church officials
complain of growing encroachment by certain Muslim extremist groups on
lands belonging to the Armenian community, especially on the Princes'
Islands in the Sea of Marmara. The police have responded with
intensified security measures.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The Constitution, in line with the Treaty of Lausanne, does not
recognize the Kurds in Turkey as a national, racial, or ethnic minority.
Many human rights abuses have been targeted at Kurds who publicly or
politically assert their Kurdish ethnic identity. Kurds who are long-
term residents in industrialized cities in western Turkey have been, for
the most part, assimilated into the political, economic, and social life
of the nation. Kurds who are currently migrating westward (including
those displaced by the conflict in the southeast) bring with them their
culture and village identity; many simply are not prepared for urban
life.
The 1991 repeal of the law prohibiting publications or communications in
Kurdish legalized some spoken and printed communications in Kurdish.
Under the law on political parties, however, all discussion that takes
place at political meetings must be in Turkish. Kurdish may be spoken
only in "nonpolitical communication." Materials dealing with Kurdish
history, culture, and ethnic identity continue to be subject to
confiscation and prosecution under the "indivisible unity of the State"
provisions of the Anti-Terror Law.
The High Court of Appeals, in rendering its decision on the former DEP
Members of Parliament, ruled that taking the Parliamentary oath in
Kurdish, wearing Kurdish colors to the oath-taking ceremony, and stating
that Turkish was a foreign language for them (all actions taken by the
former M.P.'s) were not crimes (see Section 2.a.). The courts have
given permission for a cultural foundation to be established in Istanbul
and to use the word "Kurdish" in its name.
The Ministry of Education tightly controls the curriculums in foreign-
language schools. Greek educators complain that the Turkish Ministry of
Education is extremely slow to approve Greek-language textbooks,
including those in such noncontroversial subjects as mathematics and the
natural sciences. They claim that, rather than allowing the use of
texts from Greece, the Ministry wants them to use Greek translations of
Turkish texts. Many Greek students report difficulty in continuing
their education in Turkey and go to Greece, often never to return.
The Romani population is extremely small, and there were no reported
incidents of public or government harassment directed against Roma.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Most workers have the right to associate freely and form representative
unions. Exceptions are police and military personnel. Until July the
law did not explicitly give civil servants, including schoolteachers,
the right to form legally recognized unions. This situation changed
with Parliament's passage of a package of constitutional amendments on
July 23. (Even prior to passage, civil servants' unions existed and
worked for legal recognition, collective bargaining, and the right to
strike through demonstrations and 1-day work stoppages.) Within the
package of amendments broadening democratic participation in Turkey,
there is language which, in effect, recognizes civil servants' unions.
Parliament added language to Article 53 of the Constitution stipulating
that unions formed by civil servants could bring cases to court on
behalf of their members, could carry out collective talks with the
Government to secure their objectives, and could sign an understanding
with the Government if agreement is reached. The language does not
mention strikes. The amendment also suggests that Parliament will pass
follow-on laws to regulate these procedures. However, as noted below,
branches of one civil servants' union were closed in 1995.
The Constitution stipulates that no one shall be compelled to become or
remain a member or withdraw from a labor union. The law states that
unions and confederations may be founded without prior authorization
based on a petition to the governor of the province where the union's
headquarters are to be located. Although unions are independent of the
Government and political parties, they must have government permission
to hold meetings or rallies and must allow police to attend conventions
and record the proceedings. The Constitution requires candidates for
union office to have worked 10 years in the industry represented by the
union. Slightly over 12 percent of the total civilian labor force (aged
15 and above) is unionized. There are three confederations of labor
unions in Turkey: the Turkish Confederation of Workers Unions (Turk-
Is), the Confederation of Turkish Real Trade Unions (Hak-Is), and the
Confederation of Revolutionary Workers Unions (DISK). There are also
some independent unions.
Unions and their officers have a statutory right to express views on
issues directly affecting members' economic and social interests. With
passage of the constitutional amendments package in July, Parliament
lifted restrictions on unions engaging in political activity by
completely repealing article 52 of the Constitution (see Section 2.b.).
However, even before this change, in practice unions were able to convey
clearly in election and referendum campaigns their support for, or
opposition to, given political parties and government policies.
Prosecutors may request labor courts to order a trade union or
confederation to suspend its activities or to go into liquidation for
serious infractions, based on alleged violation of specific legal norms.
The Government, however, may not summarily dissolve a union.
The right to strike, while provided for in the Constitution, is
partially restricted. For example, workers engaged in the protection of
life and property and those in the mining and petroleum industries,
sanitation services, national defense, and education do not have the
right to strike.
Collective bargaining is required before a strike. The law specifies
the series of steps a union must take before it may strike or before an
employer may engage in a lockout. Nonbinding mediation is the last of
those steps. A party that fails to comply with these steps forfeits its
rights. The employer may respond to a strike with a lockout but is
prohibited from hiring strikebreakers or using administrative personnel
to perform jobs normally done by strikers. Article 42 of Law 2822,
governing collective bargaining, strikes, and lockouts, prohibits the
employer from terminating workers who encourage or participate in a
legal strike. Unions are forbidden to engage in secondary (solidarity),
political or general strikes, or in slowdowns. In sectors in which
strikes are prohibited, disputes are resolved through binding
arbitration.
The Government has the statutory power under Law 2822 to suspend strikes
for 60 days for reasons of national security or public health and
safety. Unions may petition the Council of State to lift such a
suspension. If this appeal fails, and the parties and mediators still
fail to resolve the dispute, it is subject to compulsory arbitration at
the end of the 60-day period. The International Labor Organization's
(ILO) Committee of Experts and the Committee on the Application of
Standards regard the Government's application of the law as too broad
and called on the Government to limit the application of the Law and
recourse to compulsory arbitration to essential services in the strict
sense of the term. The Government asserts that the Law does not
contradict the Committees' principles.
Some 64 strikes, involving 26,361 workers, took place in the first 6
months of 1995. The Government suspended one strike in 1995. On
February 23, the Government suspended the planned strike by the Airline
Workers Union against Turkish Airlines, the publicly owned national
carrier, on grounds that a strike would adversely affect national
security.
With government approval, unions may and do form or join confederations
and international labor bodies, as long as these organizations are not
hostile to Turkey or to freedom of religion or belief. The
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) approved DISK
as an affiliate in December 1992. Turk-Is is a longstanding member.
Hak-Is applied for ICFTU affiliation in 1993; the application remains
pending.
In some instances labor union members have been the subject of
government limits on freedom of speech and assembly (see Sections 2.a.
and 2.b.). In June in Ankara, during demonstrations by civil servants
for the right to form legally recognized unions with collective
bargaining and strike rights, four civil servants' union presidents were
briefly detained for questioning, then released. The public prosecutor
subsequently filed charges against 37 leaders of a civil servants' trade
union who had organized the demonstrations. However, in September an
Ankara criminal court dismissed these charges. The court found that the
organizers had not intended to violate the law on demonstrations and
assemblies. There were no incidents between police and demonstrators
during the demonstrations, which lasted for several days.
Some branches of a civil servants' communications union were closed by
court order on the grounds that it was an illegal organization.
Branches were closed in July and August after an appeals court upheld
the ruling of an Istanbul court that civil servants unions' are illegal.
The court's actions occurred when Parliament amended the Constitution to
recognize civil servants' unions. Observers believe that further
legislation is needed to clarify the situation.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
All industrial workers have the right to organize and bargain
collectively, and most industrial activity and some public sector
agricultural activities are organized. The law requires that, in order
to become a bargaining agent, a union must represent not only 50 percent
plus one of the employees at a given work site but also 10 percent of
all the workers in that particular industry. This 10-percent barrier
has the effect of favoring established unions, particularly those
affiliated with Turk-Is, the confederation that represents nearly 80
percent of organized labor.
The ILO has called on Turkey to rescind this 10-percent rule. Both
Turk-Is and the Turkish employers' organization favor retention of the
rule, however, and the Government has only recently pursued a change.
Last year the government representative informed the ILO Committee on
the Application of Standards that the Ministry of Labor and Social
Security has proposed to remove the 10-percent numerical restriction,
and that its proposal had been communicated to the social partners. The
ILO Committee of Experts and the Committee on the Application of
Standards urged the Government again to remove the 10 percent rule. The
ILO took note of the Government's statement that it continued to study
removal of this requirement despite objections from employer and worker
organizations.
The law on trade unions stipulates that an employer may not dismiss a
labor union representative without rightful cause. The union member may
appeal such a dismissal to the courts, and if the ruling is in the union
member's favor, the employer must reinstate him and pay all back
benefits and salary. These laws are applied in practice.
Union organizing and collective bargaining are permitted in the duty-
free export processing zones at Antalya, Istanbul, Izmir, and Mersin.
Workers in those zones, however, are not allowed to strike during the
first 10 years of operation. Until then, settlements not otherwise
reached are determined by binding arbitration.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution and statutes prohibit compulsory labor. The laws are
enforced.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The Constitution and labor laws forbid employment of children younger
than age 15 years, with the exception that those ages 13 and 14 may
engage in light, part-time work if enrolled in school or vocational
training. The Constitution also prohibits children from engaging in
physically demanding jobs such as underground mining and from working at
night. The Ministry of Labor effectively enforces these laws only in
the organized industrial sector.
In practice, many children work because families frequently need the
supplementary income. An informal system provides work for young boys
at low wages, for example, in auto repair shops. Girls are rarely seen
working in public, but many are kept out of school to work in
handicrafts, especially in rural areas.
The Government has recognized the problem of child labor and has been
working with the ILO to define its dimensions and to determine
solutions. The Ministry of Labor, the Ankara municipality, the Turk-Is
labor confederation, and the Turkish Employers Association are among the
institutions participating in the ILO's International Program on the
Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC), a new project to solve the problems
of working children. The Ministry of Labor and the ILO have jointly
produced a study showing that almost one-half (44 percent) of the
children working in Turkey are below age 15, are paid less than the
minimum wage, and have no insurance whatsoever. The Labor Minister said
in a September speech that there are 3.5 million working young people
between the ages of 12 and 19, and that 51 percent of them are
uninsured.
In a 1994 study on child labor in rural Turkey, also undertaken under
the IPEC program, a Middle East Technical University professor reported
that children in the rural work force are largely unpaid family workers
engaged in agriculture and related activities. Since many children work
because their families need additional income, the study concluded that
solving the problem of rural child labor required a simultaneous
improvement in adult employment opportunities to raise standards of
living in rural households while expanding educational opportunities
(both general academic and vocational training) for rural children.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
The Labor Ministry is legally obliged to set minimum wages at least
every 2 years through a minimum wage board, a tripartite government-
industry-union body. In recent years it has done so annually. In
August, after some disagreements among the board members about wage
levels and the timing of implementation, the nominal minimum wage was
increased by approximately 103 percent over the year before. The
monthly gross minimum wage rates which became effective on September 1
are approximately $176 (TL 8,460,000) for workers older than age 16 and
about $148 (TL 7,087,050) for workers under age 16.
It would be difficult for a single worker, and impossible for a family,
to live on the minimum wage without support from other sources. Most
workers earn considerably more. Workers covered by the labor law, who
constitute about one-third of the total labor force, also receive a hot
meal or a daily food allowance; transportation to and from work; a fuel
allowance; and other fringe benefits which, according to the Turkish
employers' association, make basic wages alone account for only about 37
percent of total remuneration.
Labor law sets a 45-hour workweek, although most unions have bargained
for fewer hours. The law prescribes a weekly rest day and limits the
number of overtime hours to 3 hours a day for up to 90 days in a year.
The Labor Inspectorate of the Ministry of Labor effectively enforces
wage and hour provisions in the unionized industrial, service, and
government sectors, which cover about 12 percent of workers.
Occupational health and safety regulations are mandated by law, but the
Government has not carried out an effective inspection and enforcement
program. Law 1475 allows for the shutdown of an operation if a five-man
committee, which includes safety inspectors, employee, and employer
representatives, determines that the operation endangers workers' lives.
In practice, financial constraints, limited safety awareness,
carelessness, and fatalistic attitudes result in scant attention to
occupational safety and health by workers and employers alike. However,
after a mine accident in a private company in which 39 miners died, 2
managers were reportedly arrested and charged with causing the accident
through negligence.
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