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TURKEY TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT

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Turkey must set free conscientious objector RECENTLY ADDED
11 January 2010, 00:00 UTC
NEWS
Poland: Police must not repeat mistakes of l…
Amnesty International has called on the Turkish authorities to release a conscientious objector who was
arrested after he refused military service on religious grounds. Enver Aydemir says he was beaten with
truncheons in Maltepe military prison when he refused to wear military uniform on arrival on 24 December 2009 NEWS
and that the next morning he was forcibly dressed in military uniform and beaten again by the governor of the
The deadly cost of defending the environment
prison. He began a hunger strike in protest but was taken to the prison infirmary and forcibly placed on a drip.
"Enver Aydemir is a prisoner of conscience who must be released immediately and unconditionally," said
Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia Programme Director Halya Gowan. "The Turkish authorities NEWS
must ensure that he is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated, and investigate his allegations of ill-treatment
USA: Trump’s proclamation to restrict the ri…
promptly and independently." On 28 December, Enver Aydemir's lawyer made an official complaint to the state
prosecutor about his treatment and requested urgent medical attention. The lawyer told Amnesty International
that, instead, Enver Aydemir was made to undergo a "psychiatric test". A small number of conscientious
objectors who have undergone similar tests have been issued with a report stating that they have an "advanced
anti-social personality disorder" and are therefore "unsuitable for military service in times of peace and war".
Amnesty International is concerned that such reports are issued not due to any psychological condition but
solely to insistence on their status as conscientious objectors. Turkey fails to recognize the right to
conscientious objection, contrary to its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, and does not provide any civilian alternative to military service. Conscientious objectors who have
publicly stated their refusal to carry out military service have been subjected to criminal prosecution and
imprisonment of up to three years. On release, they often receive new call-up papers, and the process is
repeated. This results in what the European Court for Human Rights describes as “civil death” of conscientious
objectors, who are repeatedly prosecuted and convicted for their refusal to carry out military service. Enver
Aydemir initially declared his conscientious objection in 2007. He was taken, against his will, to carry out his
military
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your online Eskişehir military prison. In October that year, he was
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brought before a military court but was released on condition that he promptly present himself to carry out his
military service. Following his release, he has restated his refusal to perform military service on grounds of his
religious conviction and did not join his unit, leading to the issuing of an arrest warrant under which he was
arrested last month. Enver Aydemir is currently awaiting trial in Eskişehir military prison. A court hearing has
been set for 21 January where he will face charges of insubordination and desertion.

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TURKEY TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT JUSTICE SYSTEMS

CENSORSHIP AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION DETENTION PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE

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