Worldwide Right Organizations Meet in Istanbul

Bringing together 156 organizations from more than 120 countries, 38th International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) Congress kicked off yesterday with the keynote addresses of Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay and FIDH President Souhayr Belhassen. 

Between May 23 and 24, participant are to discuss and exchange views on a current theme: "Human Rights and Democratic Transitions: Experiences and Challenges".

“Human rights constitute the spirit of democratic culture,” Atalay said. 

“Human rights is the very basis of our civilization. Back in the 13th century, Rumi said: ‘The violation of individual rights is the violation of the rights of all humanity.’ He also said: ‘There is no servant or slave. All humans are brothers.’ Yunus Emre also invited everyone to peace in the name of human dignity,” he said. 

Emphasizing on the motto “Live up the people so the state will”, Atalay said: “People come first and the state is for the people.”

“In our age, respect to human rights is the guarantee of peace, security and stability. Despite this, human rights abuses resume worldwide. The most tragic example is Syria.”

Atalay: Silent revolution in Turkey

Deputy PM Atalay said human rights can not be left to the initiative of governments and underscored that the role of NGOs is bigger and more important than governments. He summarized Turkey’s progress in the past decade as follows:

“In terms of democratization and human rights, there was a silent revolution in Turkey. There has been a tremendous transformation for a more democratic process and a democratization within the limits of jurisdiction.”

“Since 2002, we are experiencing stability. The government is currently going through a process to face and compromise for the mistakes of the past.”

“We have realized the ‘Zero Tolerance to Torture’ policy. We have extended the rights of suspects and convicts.  

“We have taken steps towards a normalization of Turkey. We have made amendments in Turkish Penal Code and Anti-Terror Act. We still have a way to go. Some of these measures were taken to enhance the civil society. We have also ensured the rights of political parties. We have reinforced labor union rights. 

“We have implemented the right to demand information, as a measure of transparency. We have established the Human Rights Institution of Turkey as an independent entity. We have also opened up the Constitutional Court to individual applications.”

“Some of the these rights aimed to extend people’s cultural rights, there has been amendments that allowed the political propaganda and broadcasting in different languages and dialects.”

“We have tried to establish the superiority of law instead of the law of the strong. There has been several reforms but we still have to do more. We have signed and ratified all international human rights treaties.”

“We have amended several laws that were a product of 1980 Military Coup era. The parliament is currently drafting a new constitution. We are not saying that Turkey is doing all its homework on the issue. We will definitely make a new constitution and we have a lot to do to make it happen. While doing this, we have benefitted from the feedback of NGO and civil society. We have benefitted from conferences and forums like this one.”

Commenting on the ongoing resolution process between the Turkish state and PKK, Atalay said: “The ultimate goal is the end of terror. This is a struggle to establish a peaceful environment where all difference can co-exist within their individual and cultural rights.” 

He also added that the majority of the society supported the process. 

Belhassen: We are dedicating this congress to jailed right advocates

FIDH President Souhayr Belhassen, on the other hand, said human rights should be defended even though it would sometimes require to take risks.  

“Several fellow human rights advocates have been released in Turkey lately. However, our friend Muharrem Erbey is still being jailed on an arbitrary basis. 

“Dear Deputy Prime Minister, you know this case very well. Muharrem Erbey must be released immediately. We are pleading your government to take this appeal into consideration and we are dedicating our congress to those who are jailed for arbitrary reasons. Our friends were heinously murdered in Cambodia, in Honduras. Maybe they can’t hear us, but our friends in jail can do so. We are standing by your side today, and you will do so tomorrow.”

Belhassen said universality did not necessarily mean singularity and emphasized that differences constituted the essence of democracy, while urging to make reforms that would reorganize democracy and ensure individual rights and freedoms. 

“We should underline the protection of freedoms and individual rights including freedom of expression, faith and conscience freedom, women rights and minority rights.”

“We can sacrifice neither religious freedoms nor freedom of expression in the name resolving issues between religious and secular people. On the contrary, this would lead the tolerance issue into stalemate. Indeed we have seen many example where freedom of expression and thought were compatible with faith and conscience freedoms. 

''As FIDH, we are demanding Turkey to protect freedom of expression and release all inmates who were arrested on arbitrary basis.” (AS/EA/BM)