“This report addresses the ongoing problem of impunity for serious human rights violations
committed by state officials in Turkey. More specifically, it aims to answer two comprehensive
questions:
I. Is there an internal system that prevents and monitors torture or ill-treatment, and if so, how does it actually function?
II. Is there an effective system that punishes potential torture or ill-treatment, or can we speak of
organized impunity against torture or ill-treatment of persons in custody?
The findings of the report shed clear light on the prevailing impunity issues in Turkey. The pervasive culture and overwhelming legacy of impunity for serious human rights violations continued in the 1980s following the September 12, 1980 military coup and in the 1990s in the context of the Kurdish ‘Issues’ in Turkey’s
Eastern and Southeastern regions. Despite some of the most blatant human rights violations against the Kurdish people,
including systematic torture, kidnapping, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial executions, Turkish state authorities
were unwilling to respond to these grave human rights violations. The established practice of impunity reached
unprecedented dimensions in recent years, particularly during the period beginning after the June 7, 2015
parliamentary elections and continuing after the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, with allegations of torture and ill-treatment.
Despite increasingly persistent allegations, rare official investigations and prosecutions continue to create a strong
perception of impunity for torture and other forms of ill-treatment.
The report concludes that impunity has become almost the norm in Turkey for human rights
violations committed against individuals, especially when state officials are involved.
As emphasized throughout the report, the issue of impunity is emblematic of many structural and intertwined
problems in Turkey. In this context, each problem is either a consequence or cause of the other, factors that
cumulatively contribute to the deep-rooted culture/practice of impunity. The report identifies some of these factors as
follows:
(a) Gaps in the legal structure
(b) Political rhetoric that reinforces patterns of impunity
(c) Lack of political will to hold state officials/authorities accountable
(d) Ineffective and delayed investigations by prosecutors, and finally
(e) Implicit judiciary
In short, the report provides a chilling reminder of the organized, institutionalized, and entrenched problem of impunity
in Turkey. The report calls on Turkish authorities to effectively combat impunity for state officials for serious human
rights violations by conducting adequate, effective, and independent investigations and fair trials where perpetrators
face justice, but whether this will become a reality remains uncertain.”
Report:
