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Broken Chalk is a human rights organization and mainly concentrates on violations in the educational field. We were acting as a platform; however, we became a fully registered organization in the Netherlands in October 2020.
Our team has prepared some amendment proposals for the Draft Report on the 2019-2020 Commission Reports on Turkey by European Parliament that we would like to present to you and your office.
As mentioned in the Draft Report, the relationship between the EU and Turkey is now at its lowest point. The number of human rights violations in Turkey is increasing day by day. As you may observe, the number of people facing human rights violations in Turkey is much more than known ever.
It is mentioned in the European Commission Turkey 2020 Report that Turkey has prioritized the fight against the dismantling of the Gülen movement.[1]
Interior Minister for Turkey, Soylu said, “Since 15 July 2016, 99 thousand 66 operations have been carried out, 282 thousand 790 detentions and 94 thousand 975 arrests have been carried out. The number of people who are still detained under this crime is 25 thousand 912”.[2] The only evidence for most of the above cases is to have a link with the Gülen movement.[3]
European Court for Human Rights agreed with the Turkish Government. To stop the court from being overwhelmed, in January 2017, Turkey would establish an Inquiry Commission on the State of Emergency to provide a judicial review level to those dismissed by decree during the state of emergency period.[4] As of 3 July 2020, 126,300 applications were made to the Commission, and decisions were issued in 108,200 cases. Of those, 96,000 were rejected – meaning the original decree decision was upheld – and in 12,200 cases, the application for appeal was accepted.[5]
At this point, we would like to present our amendments for the Draft Report; we hope that you will work for the European Parliaments to add the following amendments to the Report.
Proposals for The rule of law and fundamental rights
Amendment 1
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (8) Is appalled by the serious backsliding on fundamental freedoms revealing the dire human rights situation in Turkey and the continued erosion of democracy and the rule of law; | (8) Is appalled by the serious backsliding on fundamental freedoms revealing the dire human rights situation in Turkey and the continued erosion of democracy and the rule of law; since 15 July 2016, 99 thousand 66 operations have been carried out, 282 thousand 790 detentions and 94 thousand 975 arrests have been carried out. The number of people who are still detained under this crime[6] is 25 thousand 912.[7] To have alleged affiliation with the Gülen movement should not be taken as a crime.[8] To be a member of a legal but closed association should not be taken perceived to be opposing the Government.[9] |
Amendment 2
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (10) Notes with deep concern that, despite the formal lifting of the state of emergency in July 2018, its impact on democracy and fundamental rights continues to be strongly felt;. | (10) Notes with deep concern that, despite the formal lifting of the state of emergency in July 2018, its impact on democracy and fundamental rights continues to be strongly felt. Since July 2016, authorities have published lists of those dismissed from public service and put markers against them in the state social insurance system’s registration system (SGK). Those people have been legally banned from working in public sector again; marking them in the SGK system significantly reduces their chances of finding alternative employment in private sector and stigmatizes them socially.[10] The government has seized or appointed administrators for approximately 1,000 businesses, worth an estimated USD12 billion, accused of having links to the Gülen movement[11] including private schools, 16[12] universities and educational intuitions (2761 entities were closed down[13]). To handover, back these companies and intuitions to their owners.
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Amendment 3
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (11) Deeply regrets that this repressive form of rule has now become a deliberate, relentless, systematic state policy, which extends to any critical activities, such as Kurdish activism, or even to events that took place prior to the attempted coup, such as the Gezi protests; | (11) Deeply regrets that this repressive form of rule has now become a deliberate, relentless, systematic state policy, which extends to any critical activities, such as Kurdish activism, to defend the rights of members or sympathizers of Gülen Movement, or even to events that took place prior to the attempted coup, such as the Gezi protests; |
Amendment 4
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (12) Regrets that the current overly broad anti-terrorism provisions and the abuse of the anti-terror measures have become the backbone of this state policy; reiterates its firm condemnation of the violence by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has been on the EU list of terrorist organizations since 2002; | (12) Regrets that the current overly broad anti-terrorism provisions and the abuse of the anti-terror measures have become the backbone of this state policy; in which 69,259 people have been on trial, and 155,560 people have been under criminal investigation on terrorism charges in cases linked to the Gülen movement, which Turkish authorities deems this movement as a terrorist organization, and 29,487 of those have been held in prison either on remand or following conviction;[14] reiterates its firm condemnation of the violence by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has been on the EU list of terrorist organizations since 2002; |
Amendment 5
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (13) Considers that the erosion of the rule of law and the systemic lack of independence of the judiciary continues to be one of the most pressing and worrying issues; condemns the increased surveillance by the executive and the political pressure affecting the work of judges, prosecutors, lawyers and bar associations; | (13) Considers that the erosion of the rule of law and the systemic lack of independence of the judiciary continues to be one of the most pressing and worrying issues; condemns the increased surveillance by the executive and the political pressure affecting the work of judges, prosecutors, lawyers and bar associations; in some cases higher courts correct excesses of prosecutors and lower courts, but these higher court judgments arrive too late to mitigate the chilling effect caused by the criminal proceedings.[15] |
Amendment 6
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (14) Is deeply worried about the disregard by the Turkish judiciary of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rulings and the increasing non-compliance of lower courts with the judgments of the Constitutional Court; | (14) Is deeply worried about the disregard by the Turkish judiciary of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rulings and the increasing non-compliance of lower courts with the judgments of the Constitutional Court; Former deputy chief justice of Turkey’s Constitutional Court Alparslan Altan is still behind the bars despite the decision of ECtHR.[16] |
Amendment 7
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (17) Notes with great concern the way that the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) has been specifically and continuously targeted by the Turkish authorities; strongly condemns the continued detention of former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş; | (17) Notes with great concern the way that the Gülen movement and the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) have been specifically and continuously targeted by the Turkish authorities; strongly condemns the continued detention of former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtas; |
Amendment 8
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (18) Calls on Turkey to release all imprisoned human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, academics and others who have been detained on unsubstantiated charges and to enable them to carry out their work without threat or impediment in all circumstances; strongly condemns the re-arrest and continued detention of Osman Kavala, a prominent civil society figure;
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(18) Calls on Turkey to release all imprisoned human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, academics, teachers, mothers with their babies[17], and others who have been detained on unsubstantiated charges, who did not commit any crime other than being affiliated with groups the regime sees as political threats[18] and to enable them to carry out their work without threat or impediment in all circumstances; strongly condemns the re-arrest and continued detention of Osman Kavala, a prominent civil society figure; of Memduh Boydak, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Closed Melikşah University, Tekin Ipek brother to Hamdi Akin Ipek, founder of Closed Ipek University and Prof. Sedat Laciner, former rector of Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University. To release the 1333 sick prisoners, 457 of which are in severe conditions.[19] To release Journalist Hanım Büşra Erdal eligible for release on probation according to Turkish legislation on sentences’ execution.[20] |
Proposals for Wider EU-Turkey relations and Turkish foreign policy
Amendment 9
| Present Text | Text with Amendment |
| (35-NEW)
|
(35-NEW) Turkish Government puts pressure on authorities in the Western Balkans to extradite alleged participants of the Gülen movement and seize the educational institutions known as affiliated with the Gülen Movement. Kosovo[21], Albania[22], and Moldova[23] extradite some people to Turkey; to stop the pressure in the Western Balkan countries on educational institutions[24] to seize them. |
We kindly propose and request the amendments above to be included in the Final Report. If you need more information or explanation on any of the amendments above, we are always ready to supply.
Broken Chalk
[1] https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/turkey_report_2020.pdf
[2] https://tr.sputniknews.com/turkiye/202007151042459379-soylu-15-temmuz-2016dan-bu-yana-282-bin-790-gozalti-ve-94-bin-975-tutuklama-gerceklestirildi/
[3] https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/country-information-report-turkey.pdf
[4] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/COUNTRY_19_2781
[5] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/COUNTRY_19_2781
[6] Soylu said in his speech in the scope of the fight against Gulen movement, Soylu did not state against the coup attack.
[7] https://tr.sputniknews.com/turkiye/202007151042459379-soylu-15-temmuz-2016dan-bu-yana-282-bin-790-gozalti-ve-94-bin-975-tutuklama-gerceklestirildi/
[8] https://english.alarabiya.net/en/features/2020/06/10/Why-is-Turkey-s-Erdogan-persecuting-the-Gulen-movement-
[9] https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/turkey_report_2020.pdf
[10] https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/country-information-report-turkey.pdf
[11] https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/country-information-report-turkey.pdf
[12] Known as 15 but recently The Şehir University in Istanbul was closed by a presidential decree of 30 June 2020.
[13] https://rm.coe.int/report-on-the-visit-to-turkey-by-dunja-mijatovic-council-of-europe-com/168099823e
[14] https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2020/country-chapters/turkey
[15] https://rm.coe.int/report-on-the-visit-to-turkey-by-dunja-mijatovic-council-of-europe-com/168099823e
[16] https://stockholmcf.org/turkish-constitutional-courts-new-mission-is-to-ignore-unlawful-acts-and-to-legitimize-them-says-jailed-former-deputy-chief-justice/
[17] Today, at least 743 children below the age of six live behind bars in Turkey. About half have not even reached the age of 3, says Saban Yilmaz, who heads the parliamentary human rights commission. From https://www.dw.com/en/turkey-babies-behind-bars/a-49320769
[18] https://www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/take-action/turkey-covid-19-prisoners-release/
[19] https://m.bianet.org/bianet/insan-haklari/207245-ihd-hapishanelerde-457-si-agir-1333-hasta-mahpus-var
[20] https://stockholmcf.org/turkish-authorities-refuse-to-release-political-prisoners-who-served-their-prison-times/
[21] https://br.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-kosovo-idUSKBN1H51JL
[22] https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/turkey_report_2020.pdf
[23] http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=001-193614
[24] https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/albania-closes-schools-run-by-feto-terror-group/1985350
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