The Turkish Human Rights Association (IHD) marked its 21st anniversary with a press release in Ankara today (17 July). President Reyhan Yalcindag said that the Kurdish issue was the most important issue in the continuing discussion of human rights and democracy in Turkey, and that there had to be an end to the false opposition of freedom versus security.

Yalcindag also drew attention to the occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq and the Palestinian problem: "We say no to war, violence and conflict in the world and in our country".

21 of its members dead

In the last 21 years, IHD has organised campaigns against the death penalty, for people who disappeared while detained, for peace, against torture, for equal opportunities for the handicapped, etc.

Tragically, the NGO has lost 21 of its members and organizers in unsolved murders and as a result of torture in detention, showing that there is still immense pressure on rights activists.

Human rights violations continue

"Turkey's human rights problems will not be solved with legal amendments and a change in government," said Yalcindag. As long as the supremacy of law and the independence of the judiciary were not guaranteed, rights and freedoms could not develop.

Yalcindag pointed to the frequency of torture, the use of laws to prevent freedom of expression, violence towards and discrimination of women, isolation and maltreatment in prisons and pressure on critical media.

She called for Turkey's citizens to use their vote for those promising human rights, democracy, peace, basic rights, gender equality and a pluralist country.

Six-monthly IHD report

Meanwhile, IHD has also presented a six-monthly summary of human rights violations for 2006. Based on appeals to the association, reports prepared by association commissions and on press scannings, the report has found that in the first six months of 2006, a total of 195 people died and 124 were injured in armed conflict. Of the dead, 83 were security officers, and 112 armed militants.

Other items in the report are:

* 14 people died and 9 were injured when not following a warning to stop or because of abuse of officials' weapon use.

* 4 people died in prison, 2 in detention and 16 in unsolved attacks.

* 12 people died from land mines or military ammunition ( 1 woman, 3 children), and a further 17 children were injured.

* There were 304 cases of torture (139 cases of torture and maltreatment while detained, 5 cases of torture and maltreatment by village guards, 68 cases of torture and maltreatment outside of places of detention, 14 cases of torture in prison, 23 cases of people being threatened, 51 cases of being beaten and injured by security forces at protest marches, 4 cases of torture and maltreatment by special security officers)

The association will publish a press release on its report in August. (TK/EÜ/AG)