Mistreatment of Kurdish villagers are brought human rights activist to the streets of Turkey. There has also been news over torture and food poisoning.
These
claims have been made by three pro- Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP)
politicians. Members of Amnesty International meanwhile are demanding
government investigate the circumstances in which two Kurds were thrown off a
military helicopter.
But
the government has accused the HDP of having ties with the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) and that thousands of its members have been prosecuted for
the same reason, including its leaders. The HDP denies such links. The PKK is
designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the European Union and US.
The
news has come into being since the imprisonment of the HDP politicians,
including Ayhan Bilgen who is mayor of Van province. They all fell sick after
consuming food at the Ankara police headquarters.
Both Kurds who are said to have
fallen from the helicopter were aged 55 and 50. The rights group voiced its
concerns about the “allegations of torture and mistreatment” which it said were unacceptable
under international human rights law and standards that Turkey was obliged to
comply with. The men who were arrested on September 11, this year were kept
into captivity as part of an operation against PKK. There has been proof of police
brutality in captivity too.
It is being said that Kurdish
inhabitants are being caught in the crossfire with the government officials.
While the PKK has been designated as a terrorist outfit, it has led to pulling
in literally all innocent Kurdish villagers into the net of suspicion.
Amnesty International’s Turkey
campaigner, Milena Buyum has said that, “Turkey is bound by the UN Convention
Against Torture and the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, both
of which it is a party to. The Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the
Council of Europe is tasked with monitoring places of detention in member
states and can ask questions regarding the cases of alleged torture and other
ill-treatment. As Amnesty International, we will continue monitoring the
developments in this shocking case.”
It has also been stated that those detained are not given the right to an attorney of allowed to speak to family. Such forced measures amount to complete violation of human rights. There is already increased concern over detention conditions due to a fear around the pandemic led virus spread.
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