When a student is called to register or be examined for military service, a deferment may be requested and granted (Netherlands July 2001, 26). If attending school outside the country, the student can make the request by presenting an official transcript and verification of enrolment from the academic institution to the Turkish embassy in the country of residence (Lehigh University n.d.). The same information is sent to the Military Service Bureau in Turkey, which then issues an official statement indicating that the student's request for deferment from military service has been approved for the coming academic year, if the school is in Turkey (Koç University 18 Aug. 2003). The official statement must then be presented to the academic institution in Turkey before the student can be fully registered into the program (ibid.; Fatih University n.d.).

Since deferment for academic purposes is only granted for a period of one year, a student can apply at the end of the academic year to extend the period of deferment for a subsequent year, upon the "production of the requisite documents," or, in some cases, "following a course of study or training until the end of the year in which they reach the age of 29" (Netherlands July 2001, 26). According to information posted on the Website of War Resisters' International (WR), military service can be deferred until age 36 in the case of postgraduate studies (2005).

According to information provided by the First Secretary of the Embassy of Turkey, in Ottawa, on 29 August 2003, the rule is that all academic institutions in Turkey recognized by the Higher Education Council, which is responsible for education beyond the high school level, are required to issue a declaration verifying that the individual named in the document will be a student at their institution during the coming academic year for which the start and end dates are specified. For military service to be deferred, the document must then be forwarded to the relevant government office (Embassy of Turkey 29 Aug. 2003). Additional documentation may be required during the school year in exceptional cases, but this is not the general practice (ibid.).

An immigration counsellor of the Embassy of Canada in Ankara indicated in 27 April 2005 correspondence that for the purposes of military service deferment, "[a] student should be able to confirm that he/she is studying at an educational institution." During the academic year, "[a]dditional documents are not required [since] [t]he confirmation of an ongoing student status is satisfactory" (Embassy of Canada 27 Apr. 2005).

Additional information indicating that documentary proof must be forwarded to the government during the academic year to demonstrate that the student is attending lectures and writing exams could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

An article in The Turkish Online Journal of Distance Learning of Anadolu University, that was authored by the Dean of the Open Education Faculty, indicates that the university offers open education, which is also referred to as distance education, and that a "considerable portion of male students that enrol [in] the Anadolu University distance education system are believed to have [done so for] the purpose of deferring their military service" (Anadolu University Jan. 2001). The Dean adds that those who do enrol for this reason "either drop out or [are] dismissed from the [open education] system" (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Anadolu University. January 2001. The Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education. Vol. 2, No. 1. Dr. Ali Ekrem Ozkul. "Anadolu University Distance Education System: From Emergence to 21st Century." http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde3/2/ekremtxt.htm [Accessed 27 Aug. 2003]

Embassy of Canada, Ankara. 27 April 2005. Correspondence from an immigration counsellor.

Embassy of Turkey, Ottawa. 29 August 2003. Telephone interview with the First Secretary.

Fatih University. n.d. "Admission and Registration: Application Procedure and Admission Requirements." http://www.fatih.edu.tr/en/prospective/prosp_adm.html [Accessed 27 Aug. 2003]

Koç University. 18 August 2003. "Undergraduate Information." http://www1.ku.edu.tr/main/home.php?I=619&c=205&m=617&s=1&p=1 [Accessed 27 Aug. 2003]

Lehigh University. n.d. Turkish Students Club. "New Students." http://www.lehigh.edu/~inturkey/newto/htm [Accessed 27 Aug. 2003]

The Netherlands. July 2001. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Directorate for Movements of Persons, Migration and Consular Affairs, Asylum and Migration Division. Turkey/Military Service. http://www.ecoi.net/pub/ms59/neth-tur0701.pdf [Accessed 8 Apr. 2003]

War Resisters' International (WRI). 2005. Turkey: Refusing to Bear Arms 2005 Revision. http://www.wri-org/co/rtba/turkey.htm [Accessed 28 Apr. 2005]

Embassy of Turkey, Ottawa.

Europa World Year Book 2004

Internet sites, including: Al-Bawaba, Amnesty International (AI), BBC, Centre for Defense Information (CDI), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2004, Embassy of Turkey (Ottawa), Embassy of Turkey (Washington), European Country of Origin Information Network (ECOI), Freedom in the World 2004, Human Rights Watch (HRW), Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), WNC.