Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1987
TURKEY
.
Turkey is a republic with a multiparty parliamentary system
and a strong presidency. In 1987 Turkey completed a return to
a full functioning democracy. A referendum, passed on
September 6, restored all political rights to those former
politicians who had been banned from politics by a provisional
article of the 1982 Constitution. All charges against the
formerly banned politicians for activities prior to the
referer\,dum were dropped. Prime Minister Turgut Ozal called
for early national elections which took place on November 29.
These were the first national elections since 1980 to include
all prominent political leaders. Prime Minister Ozal's
Motherland Party won the elections from a field of seven legal
political parties.
The Turkish National Police in the cities and the Jandarma in
the countryside are responsible for maintaining public order.
On July 19, the Government lifted martial law in the last five
provinces where it had been in effect. At present nine
provinces (Istanbul, plus eight provinces in the southeast
where the Government faces armed Kurdish guerrillas) remain
under a state of emergency, which empowers their civilian
governors to exercise some of the powers of martial law
commanders. In addition, a specially empowered "supergovernor"
oversees and coordinates the actions of 12 governors in
southeastern Turkey (including the 8 southeastern provinces
under the state of emergency)
.
Since 1980 Turkey has been moving from a closed economy,
dominated by the state sector, to a free market, exportoriented
economy. Although the rates of inflation and
unemployment are still high, the economy under the
Government's structural adjustment program has made
substantial advances. In April Turkey applied for full
membership in the European Economic Community.
Progress in the observance of human rights continued in 1987.
The end of martial law in July 1987, the lifting of political
bans in the September referendum, and recent court rulings
removed many restraints on freedom of the press. In January
the Government recognized, in principle, the right of Turkish
citizens to appeal to the European Human Rights Commission,
although it has yet to approve appeals to the European Human
Rights Court, whose decisions are binding. In January 1988,
Turkey signed the Council of Europe (COE) Convention for the
Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment and
announced its intention to sign a similar U.N. agreement. By
signing, the Government of Turkey, for the first time, accepted
official outside monitoring of places of detention, a step
human rights organizations had long been advocating.
Application for membership in the European Community has
provided an additional impetus for bringing human rights
practices into conformity with general Western European norms.
The Government prosecuted many persons accused of torturing
detainees. Increased penalties for torture have been
incorporated into the proposed revision of the penal code.
The Government is also improving prison conditions by building
new facilities and responding to prisoner demands. However,
despite the Government's efforts to date, serious and repeated
incidences of torture continue to be reported.
Some minority problems persist. The Constitution regards all
citizens as Turks but, except for the special status granted
to non-Muslim minorities by the Treaty of Lausanne (1923),
Turkey does not legally recognize the existence of ethnic
minorities
.
Trade unions and associations are prohibited by the 1982
Constitution and the Law on Associations from engaging in
political activities or having organic links or ties with
political parties.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political Killing
There were no accusations of politically motivated killings by
government forces in 1987. A terrorist bombing in Istanbul
during October killed one person. Also, an attack on a police
station in Istanbul in August resulted in the death of one
policeman.
b. Disappearance
There were no known disappearances caused by government forces.
c. Torture or Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
In January 1988, Turkey signed the Council of Europe (COE)
Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment and announced its intention to sign a
similar U.N. agreement. Accession to the COE Convention
allows an international committee of COE member states to
visit all places of detention (police stations, civilian and
military prisons, and mental hospitals) at any time, following
notification of the visit to the Government of Turkey. In
announcing its intention to sign the COE Convention, the
Government stressed the seriousness of Turkey's desire to
eradicate torture.
Although the Constitution states that "no one shall be
subjected to torture or ill-treatment incompatible with human
dignity," Turkish politicians, the Turkish press, and outside
monitoring groups have repeatedly asserted that prisoners are
subject to mistreatment and torture during initial
interrogation or imprisonment. In its September 1987 File on
Torture, Amnesty International charged that torture was
"widespread" and "systematic," claiming that "almost 4 years
after a civilian government came to power in November 1983, no
effective measures have been taken to prevent torture." The
Amnesty file included accounts of torture methods, centers of
torture, sexual abuse, and death in custody. Helsinki Watch
in its latest report concluded that "torture is still
practiced in Turkey on a large scale." It also stated,
however, that abuse or torture in prisons, apart from the
intitial detention period, has substantially decreased.
Some assertions of torture concern treatment that could be
defined as police brutality, such as rough handling by police
officials aimed at intimidating a suspect or prisoner or
resulting from personal animosity. In other cases the
mistreatment appears to involve systematic torture. Nearly
all of the numerous assertions have derived from treatment
during initial periods of incommunicado detention, before
charges were filed and before the accused was able to contact
an attorney. Many cases were documented by medical evidence.
Greater freedom of the press has yielded extensive coverage in
Turkey of such instances of torture, including photos of
victims, descriptions of methods, and sketches of premises
where torture is said to have taken place.
Even before signing the COE Convention, the Government had
condemned torture and expressed its determination to eradicate
it by prompt and severe punishment of offenders. Following
the November elections, the newly appointed Director General
of Security, who serves as head of the Turkish National Police,
flatly condemned the practice of torture and pledged to
eradicate it. The Government has made efforts to investigate
assertions of torture and to prosecute the offenders.
Although accurate figures for the number of investigations and
prosecutions are not available, the press continues to report
sentences of those convicted of torture. For example, in
October, following a judicial medical board's determination
that a prisoner in Bingol died as the result of torture, the
Government opened a case against a number of military
personnel, including one officer. This same officer was later
convicted of torture in a separate case. Nonetheless,
international human rights organizations continue to maintain
that many assertions of torture are not fully investigated and
that some convicted offenders continue to carry out their
official duties even while their cases are being appealed.
Human rights advocates both in and outside of Turkey, including
the Turkish Bar Association, have suggested that the most
effective way to prevent torture or assertions of torture is
to allow lawyers access to prisoners during the initial period
of detention. Such access is being considered among proposed
revisions to the criminal code. The revised criminal code, if
adopted, would also increase the punishment for torture. The
current criminal code categorizes murder by torture as
manslaughter and punishes it with an 8-year sentence.
Penalties for torture which does not result in death range
from 3 to 5 years. In 1986 the Parliament defeated a bill
which would have increased this penalty to a range of 5 to 10
years. The new criminal code would increase the penalty for
murder by torture to up to 16 years.
In August, following widespread hunger strikes by prisoners
and parallel demonstrations by their friends and relatives
outside the prisons, Turkish reporters were permitted for the
first time to visit prisons and to report extensively on prison
conditions. As a result of this press attention, conditions
in many prisons appear to have improved. The Government has
responded to many prisoner demands and has been building new
prisons to improve living conditions. The Minister of Justice
claimed in September that prison conditions had improved
dramatically in the last 3 years with the establishment of 93
new places of detention. However, because of its relative
underdevelopment, most public facilities in Turkey, including
prisons, are still substandard when judged against those of
many developed countries.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, Exile or Forced Labor
Except in limited circumstances, such as when a person is
caught in the act of committing a crime, a judge must issue a
detention warrant to the prosecutor if a prisoner is to be
incarcerated. The police or public prosecutor, however, can
hold persons taken into custody incommunicado and without
charge for up to 24 hours. By court order, the period of
incommunicado detention may be extended to 15 days. In cases
of "offenses committed collectively" by three or more persons,
detention without charge for up to 15 days is permitted without
court order.
In the nine provinces under a state of emergency, the governor
(or supergovernor ) may authorize detention of a person for up
to 30 days without charge. Under emergency rule, authorities
do not need warrants to detain suspects. Once in formal
custody, a detainee is taken before a public prosecutor to be
informed of pending charges. If the prosecutor decides to
pursue the case, the detainee is arraigned before a judge and
subsequently allowed to retain a lawyer.
Parliament in 1986 defeated a bill requiring immediate access
to a lawyer. A proposed revision of the criminal code under
which a person, upon being detained, would have the right to
obtain a lawyer is still under discussion. A detainee does
not have a right of bail; the arraigning judge, however, may
release the accused on provisional liberty on presentation of
an appropriate guarantee, or order him held in preventive
detention if the court determines that he may flee or destroy
evidence. The Constitution specifies the right of detainees
to request speedy conclusion of arraignment and trial. In all
cases, the authorities may hold a detainee incommunicado
within the prescribed time limits until he is charged or
released. According to the Police Powers Act of 1975, a
detainee's next of kin must normally be notified "in the
shortest time .
"
On April 15, the Parliament passed a law rescinding a
provision of the Execution of Sentences Act of 1986 that
permitted Turkish judicial authorities to impose sentences of
"security observation," known commonly as internal exile.
The Constitution prohibits forced labor, and there is none in
practice.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
Defendants normally have the right to an open trial. In some
trials, such as those held in military prisons or on military
compounds, members of the public must seek permission to
attend, but such permission is routinely granted. Although
Turkey is predominantly Muslim, its court system and judicial
procedures are modeled on the Italian (criminal) and Swiss
(civil) law codes. As in many other civil law countries,
trials in which layman juries render verdicts do not form part
of the Turkish judicial system.
The Constitution declares that judges shall be independent in
the discharge of their duties and provides for their secure
tenure. It also prohibits authorities from giving orders or
recommendations to judges concerning the exercise of judicial
power. The independence of the judiciary was demonstrated
when the Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional two
provisions of the 1985 Police Powers Act which were widely
considered to be oppressive. Courts have also acquitted many
defendants in cases involving freedom of expression.
Public prosecutors are also independent; to pursue a case is
their decision alone. It is they who determine whether to
pursue investigations of assertions of torture. The Supreme
Council of Judges and Public Prosecutors, appointed by the
President and including the Minister of Justice, selects
judges and prosecutors for the higher courts and oversees
those of the lower courts.
All defendants accused of terrorism or other offenses against
the security of the State, including drug smuggling, are tried
in one of eight State Security Courts. The judges in these
courts observe the same standards of evidence as judges
presiding over regular civilian courts. Three judges preside
over State Security courts: a civilian judge as chairman, one
additional civilian judge, and one military judge. Civilian
and security courts generally conduct trials under the same
rules of procedure, based on the Constitution and emergency
law regulations.
A conviction or acquittal in either system may be appealed.
If an appeals court overturns a lower court's guilty verdict,
the case is sent back to the lower court for reconsideration.
If the lower court insists on its original verdict, the case
is returned to the appeals court for a binding opinion. In
some cases, particularly capital cases, appeals to the Supreme
Court or to the High Court of Military Appeals are mandatory
and automatic. If a death sentence is confirmed by an appeals
court, it must be approved by the Council of Ministers, then
by Parliament, and finally by the President.
Available evidence suggests that Kurdish-speaking defendants
standing trial in the southeast often suffer from having only
a partial, or in some cases total, lack of familiarity with
Turkish, the official and only language permitted in
communication with attorneys or judicial officials. Although
translators are permitted, the quality of the translations
from Kurdish into Turkish is reportedly poor.
Estimates of the number of political prisoners held in Turkish
jails vary greatly, depending on the source and the source's
definition of political prisoner. The Government denies that
it holds any political prisoners but points out that many
persons have been imprisoned for terrorist acts or for other
crimes committed in the course of pursuing ostensibly political
goals during the 1970's. Human rights organizations believe
that many people have been imprisoned under statutes
proscribing "membership in illegal organizations," prohibiting
propaganda aimed at promoting the hegemony of one class or
ethnic group, and advocating the establishment of an Islamic
state. They estimate that persons currently imprisoned for
nonviolent activity under these statutes number several
hundred
.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home or Correspondence
The Constitution provides for the inviolability of a person's
domicile and the privacy of correspondence and communication.
Entry by government officials into a private residence and
interception or monitoring of private correspondence are
permitted only upon issuance of a judicial warrant.
In the nine provinces still under state-of-emergency law,
however, the governor (or supergovernor ) may empower
authorities to search residences or the premises of political
parties, businesses, associations, and other organizations
without obtaining a warrant. They may also search, hold, or
seize without warrant persons, letters, telegrams, and
documents
.
g. Violation of Humanitarian Law in Armed Conflicts
Since August 1984, the Government has faced in southeastern
Turkey an increasingly bloody campaign of violence carried out
by Kurdish guerrilla groups resident both in Turkey and several
nearby countries, whose professed aim is to establish an
independent Kurdish state--incorporating parts of present-day
Turkey, Iraq, and Iran--by destabilizing the central Turkish
Government. Armed Kurdish rebels in Turkey receive substantial
outside support and materiel.
Guerrilla attacks appear to have increased in both number and
geographic extent in 1987. Recent changes in guerrilla tactics
include the formation of larger bands for armed attacks,
strikes at the economic and transportation infrastructure of
the region, and brutal, terrorist-style massacres of villagers,
many of the victims being women and children.
The attacks by supporters of the Marxist-oriented Kurdish
Workers' Party (PKK) , the main insurgent group, on government
and civilian targets has resulted in at least 500 civilian and
military deaths. A Turkish paper in July reported the 3-year
death toll at 715, of which 289 were civilians, mostly women
and children, 159 military personnel, and 267 guerrillas.
There have been additional killings, particularly of civilians,
since then. Despite major military operations against the
PKK, guerrilla activities continue in many remote and
relatively inaccessible parts of the southeast.
Turkish members of Parliament, international human rights
groups, and the Turkish press have raised questions concerning
activities by security forces in southeastern Turkey.
Reportedly, family members of suspected terrorists have been
abused or tortured to obtain information about the terrorists*
whereabouts. In some cases, the populations of entire
villages have been questioned or even detained. In other
cases, villagers suspected of providing food to terrorists
have been charged with aiding the separatists.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Presso
Political developments and court rulings have removed most
restraints on freedom of the press. The criminal code,
however, prohibits speech or writings considered threatening
to state security and the democratic system of government.
The proscription applies to advocacy of class or racial
domination (e.g., communism or fascism), the establishment of
a theocratic state (e.g.. Islamic fundamentalism), or the
creation of a separate state on ethnic lines (e.g., Kurdish
separatism). These provisions are longstanding, dating from
the early days of the Turkish Republic.
The Turkish press is robust and vigorous. It is privately
owned and reflects a wide range of political views. There is
no "government" paper; to a greater or lesser extent, all
newspapers present opposition views. Furthermore, the recent
trend in judicial rulings affecting freedom of the press has
been consistently in favor of more freedom despite still
existing statutory restrictions. Nevertheless, the
possibility of prosecution probably induces some caution by
the press in its selection of subject matter for reporting.
Turkish radio and television (TRT) is a government monopoly.
Opposition leaders complain that it is biased toward the
Government in its coverage, although all parties were
permitted to present their views during the November election
campaign. Works of certain leftist and Kurdish performers and
writers are reliably reported to be banned from broadcast on
TRT for political or cultural reasons.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
Peaceful assemblies are permitted with prior permission from
the authorities. Such requests are generally granted.
According to current regulations, marching routes, rally
areas, crowd dispersion routes, and poster hanging locations
are to be fixed for each city every January. The Government
allowed political rallies during the referendum campaign and
did not interfere with the political campaigning for the
November parliamentary elections.
The Law on Associations, which reflected government concern
over the involvement of some associations in the political
violence preceding the military intervention of 1980,
prohibits associations from having ties to political parties
or engaging in political activity. Association activity is
closely monitored by the Government. Associations must submit
their charters for the approval of government authorities
before they are allowed to form. Turkey's Human Rights
Association, formed in July 1986, did not receive permission
to operate as a legal association until 1 year later, although
it was able to hold meetings and seminars in the interim.
As a reaction to the universities' involvement in pre-1980
violence, the Constitution and the Political Parties Law
proscribe student and faculty involvement in political
activities. Political parties are forbidden to form youth
branches. Students must obtain their university rector's
permission before joining an association. After student
protests, the Government withdrew in April a proposed amendment
to the Higher Education Act which would have limited student
associations to one per university campus. Nevertheless, 143
students who protested the draft law went on trial for unlawful
assembly. This trial is still going on. Of approximately 100
faculty members dismissed under martial law regulations--as
many as 1,000 resigned of their own will either. out of
disagreement with the military intervention or for other,
mainly economic, reasons--a number have petitioned for
reinstatement, and at least one professor has been reinstated
following a court decision in his favor.
Membership in, or activities related to, an organization
advocating the establishment of a system of government based
on class (e.g.. Communist organization) are illegal under
Turkish law. Authorities detained four persons in October and
arraigned them on charges of being active members of the
Revolutionary People's Union, which is claimed to be such an
organization
.
Trade unions and confederations which continued to operate
under the provisions of the 1983 labor law have been allowed
rules and wage structure. The 1983 Collective Bargaining,
Strike, and Lock-out Law strictly regulates the bargaining
process and makes strikes outside the collective bargaining
process (general strikes, political strikes, and solidarity
strikes) illegal. Unions are able to represent their members,
engage in collective bargaining, and respond to their members'
interests
.
Under martial law, the activities of trade unions and
confederations were severely restricted. Notwithstanding the
lifting of martial law, political activity by trade unions is
banned by the Constitution, the Law on Associations, and the
Trade Union Law. Unions can theoretically neither endorse
candidates and parties nor make contributions to their
campaigns. Nevertheless, the Turkish Confederation of Labor,
Turk-Is, openly campaigned against the ruling Motherland Party
both in the 1986 byelections and the 1987 parliamentary
elections. Trade union activity in defense of workers' social
and economic interests is not regarded as political activity.
The unions have taken advantage of that distinction to mount
strenuous public campaigns against various government policies
and to lobby government and opposition parliamentarians in
support of labor positions.
These campaigns included continuing efforts to persuade the
Parliament to bring the laws restricting union activity into
harmony with relevant International Labor Organization (ILO)
conventions. A March 24 "March On Parliament" was prevented
by the police, who charged that Turk-Is had not applied for a
parade permit.
A December 1986 court decision ordered the permanent closing
of DISK (Confederation of Revolutionary Trade Unions), whose
activities were suspended under martial law following the 1980
military takeover. The trial is in the appeals stage. The
organization and its funds remain under the control of courtappointed
trustees. Three former leaders of DISK were elected
to Parliament in November. The Peace Association trials are
also at the appeals stage, and all defendants are free on bail.
Turkish government, union, and employer representatives
participate fully in the activities of the ILO. The largest
confederation, Turk-Is, is an affiliate of the International
Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU); most Turk-Is
member unions are affiliated with their respective
international trade secretariats. The Government of Turkey
was elected a deputy member of the ILO governing body in 1987.
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial
Organizations (AFL-CIO) has alleged that the Turkish workers'
constitutional right to organize is hampered by the labor code
and by government and employer policies and practices, that
the right to strike is heavily encumbered, and that observance
of minimal safety and health standards is lax. The Minister
of Labor has announced that the Government is preparing
legislation which will address some of the worker rights
issues raised by the AFL-CIO and others. The new legislation
reportedly will modify or eliminate some restrictions placed
on trade unions, excessive government oversight of unions, and
regulations affecting their free choice of officers. New
legislation would also address the right of civil servants and
teachers to organize, as well as the strict requirements a
union currently must satisfy in order to become a bargaining
agent
.
c. Freedom of Religion
The overwhelming majority of Turks are Sunni Muslims.
"Alevis," adherents of different heterodox varieties of
Shi'ism, constitute from 10 to 15 percent of the population.
There are also various small Christian religious groups, and a
small Jewish community.
Turkish governments since the founding of the Republic have
regarded secularism as an essential attribute of a modern,
Western-style democratic system, and the Constitution
proclaims it to be a basic characteristic of the State.
Accordingly it distinguishes carefully between a person's
private right to "freedom of conscience, religious belief, and
conviction" and public proselytizing of any kind. Since
Ottoman times, personal identity in Turkish society has
correlated with religion. The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne defines
minorities according to religion, and personal identity is
still largely synonymous with religious identity even in the
modern secular Turkish state. Proselytization is therefore
politically sensitive.
Under the Constitution, "instruction in religious culture and
moral education" in accordance with a state-prepared
curriculum is compulsory for all students. The Education
Ministry confirmed in 1986 that non-Muslims would have to
attend classes in general religious instruction but would be
excused from the "practical" sections, which include
memorization of Koranic verses and instructions in prayer.
The courses--2 hours per week--are taught by lay teachers.
Extracurricular Koran courses using government-approved texts
are permitted. The Government has closed Koran courses run by
fundamentalist sects teaching a more radical brand of Islam.
Among other religious groups, small numbers of Armenian
Orthodox and Armenian Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Greek
Catholic, Bulgarian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Syrian and
Assyrian Christian, Chaldean Uniates, Protestants, and Jewish
believers are found in Turkey, primarily in Istanbul. In
addition to the Turkish Constitution, the Treaty of Lausanne
guarantees the rights of the non-Muslim minorities. These
groups operate churches, monasteries, synagogues, schools
(where students may be taught in their own language), and
charitable religious foundations such as hospitals and
orphanages
.
Non-Muslim minority groups have repeatedly complained about
government policies and procedures concerning the operation of
community schools, the formation of parish councils, and the
registration and repair of church property. Government
restrictions on the transfer of property to religious
charitable organizations is also a matter of contention.
The Government has recently taken steps to resolve several
issues of concern to non-Muslim groups. It granted permission
to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in April 1987 to rebuild
its administration building, destroyed by fire in 1941. It
increased the value of repairs which can be made without prior
authorization to historical buildings, thereby removing
another issue of contention. It permitted the free
circulation of Bibles. However, it has not yet granted
permission to build churches to such communities as the
Chaldean Uniates who have emigrated to Istanbul from the
southeast, or to the Armenian community of Ankara.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
There is general freedom of movement within Turkey. Turks
generally are free to travel abroad, and increasing numbers
have done so since the relaxation of currency controls.
According to the Constitution, a citizen's freedom to leave
may be restricted on account of the national economic
situation, civic obligations (generally military service), or
criminal investigation or prosecution. Some Turks involved in
lengthy mass trials dating from the early 1980 's have been
denied passports, although others have been granted passports,
and there is evidence that some citizens not under indictment
were denied passports for political reasons. Turkish law
provides that those denied passports while under indictment
may nevertheless be permitted to travel if the Justice
Ministry and Office of the Prime Minister approve.
Restrictions have been eased as a matter of practice, and the
Government is currently considering legislative changes in
order to bring Turkish passport policies more into conformity
with European norms.
Turkish law grants citizens protection against deportation,
extradition, or denial of reentry. The Constitution provides
for the right of Turks living abroad to return home. Under
provisions of the Turkish citizenship law, however, the
Government may strip citizenship from those who have refused
to return home to face criminal charges, or who have committed
acts expatriating themselves, including failing to return to
perform military service. According to a Turkish press report
in April, 13,788 Turks living abroad have been stripped of
their citizenship since 1980.
Turkey has permanently resettled approximately 4,500 Afghan
refugees of Turkic ethnicity in recent years and provides a
temporary haven for East European refugees in two temporary
settlement facilities. Since Turkey limits the definition of
refugees to East Europeans, the Government does not grant
refugee status to Iranians. Nevertheless, as a country of
first asylum, Turkey serves as a safe haven for many Iranian
refugees being processed for resettlement by the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) . It does not
generally deport to Iran those who entered Turkey illegally or
who overstayed their permitted time as "tourists." In
consequence, large numbers of Iranians are now living in
Turkey, many of them in Istanbul and other large cities.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Gonvernment
The right to change the government exists both in theory and
in practice. Turkey has a multiparty, presidential
parliamentary system. The President is elected by Parliament
for a single 7-year term. The current President, whose
election was automatic with the approval of Turkey's new
Constitution in the 1982 referendum, is retired General Kenan
Evren, former Chief of the Turkish General Staff and head of
the National Security Council which governed Turkey during the
period of military rule (1980-83).
Elections for public office are on the basis of universal
suffrage. The unicameral Parliament has 450 seats elected on
a proportional basis. The Election Law requires that a party
win at least 10 percent of the total national vote in order to
obtain seats in Parliament. The 10 percent threshold is
intended to prevent political fragmentation and recurrence of
the parliamentary paralysis of the late 1970'5. Of the seven
legal parties which fielded slates of candidates for the
November national elections, three received more than 10
percent of the total vote.
Parties advocating a theocratic state, the superiority or
dictatorship of a particular social class or group, or
"exclusive" or "elitist" political philosophies are prohibited.
No party may be formed around a particular ethnic or cultural
group. Among the prohibited political groupings are Communist
and other Marxist parties, which are based on class, and
Fascist "elitist" parties. These are regarded as inimical to
a Western-style democratic society and threatening to Turkey's
fundamental integrity. Fascists and Communists similarly are
banned from membership in other parties. Members of the armed
forces and certain categories of civil servants may not join
any political party.
The Constitution provides for equal political rights for men
and women. Turkey was one of the first countries to grant
women full and equal political rights. There are currently
11 female Members of Parliament, one of whom is a cabinet
minister, and several women hold important positions in the
party hierarchies. Members of minorities, Muslim and
non-Muslim, face no legal limitations on political
participation as long as they accept Turkish national
identity. Despite other limitations and restrictions on Kurds
as an ethnic group, many Turks of Kurdish descent serve or
have served in the Parliament, the Cabinet, and senior
government posts.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
The Government permitted visits to Turkey by foreigners to
discuss human rights during 1987 and, in most cases,
facilitated contacts for both official and nonofficial
visitors. The Government was less helpful to visitors
investigating the Kurdish issue. Since the 1983 settlement of
a five-nation complaint in the European Human Rights
Commission, Turkey has undertaken to provide regular
confidential reports to the Council of Europe and to permit
site visits. The Government has not permitted prison visits
by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Turkey's
accession to the COE Torture Convention will mean future
visits by the COE international committee.
A nongovernmental Human Rights Association was provisionally
formed in July 1986 and had its charter officially approved in
1987. The Social Democratic Populist Party, the main
opposition party, also has a human rights committee and has
actively pursued human rights issues in Parliament.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution regards all Turkish citizens as equal and
prohibits discrimination on ethnic grounds. In the Lausanne
Treaty, the Government undertook "to assure full and complete
protection of life and liberty to all inhabitants of Turkey
without distinction as to birth, nationality, language, race,
or religion." At the same time, it has been the longstanding
policy of Turkish governments to seek assimilation of persons
of non-Turkish ethnic backgrounds into the mainstream of
society. The size of the non-Muslim minority communities has
declined steadily over the years.
Non-Muslim minority groups continue to complain about the
restrictive nature of government policies and procedures
regulating the operation of community schools, the purchase
and sale of community real estate, the administration of
church properties, and the activities of parish councils. The
prohibition on most charitable religious organizations against
accepting bequests also continues to be a major concern.
Kurds can be found throughout Turkey, both as a result of
Ottoman settlement policy and more recent migration to
metropolitan centers. Those living outside of the
southeastern part of the country have been assimilated more
completely into national life. Most Kurdish speakers are
concentrated in the economically disadvantaged southeast, and
many live a tribal existence. Through large-scale economic
development programs, the Government seeks to integrate fully
both the region and its people into modern Turkey.
The Government remains strongly opposed to any assertion of a
Kurdish ethnic identity which could bring into question the
unity of the Turkish State. Publication of books, newspapers,
and any other materials in Kurdish is forbidden, as are books
or any other materials dealing with Kurdish history, culture,
or ethnic identity. The Kurdish language is not permitted for
official purposes, e.g., in the courts, nor is it allowed in
certain private situations such as receiving visitors in
prison, even when the prisoner or visitor does not speak
Turkish. However, there is no restriction on the use of
Kurdish in nonofficial settings.
As noted above, the right of indigenous minority groups to use
their own languages is limited. Although the Lausanne Treaty
states that "no restrictions shall be imposed on the free use
by any Turkish national of any language in private
intercourse, in commerce, religion, in the press, or in
publications of any kind or at public meetings," the
Constitution states that the official language of the country
is Turkish. One article of the Constitution bans
discrimination on the basis of language, while others prohibit
the public use of "languages prohibited by law." While there
is no legislation defining prohibited languages, the
broadcasting and publishing laws do define "legal languages."
Persons have been tried on a variety of charges relating to
the use of Kurdish. All recent such trials have resulted in
acquittals. The Government has stated that the intent of its
bans on publishing in Kurdish (and its discouraging of
languages such as Georgian and Laz) is to foster Turkish as
the language of all citizens for all uses. This is part of an
effort to inculcate in all Turkish citizens a sense of
identity with the Turkish State and nation as opposed to
identification with any particular group within the nation.
In practice, the severity of the restrictions on the use of a
minority language appears to depend on the perceived threat
the group in question presents to the integrity of the State.
For example, the Government faces armed Kurdish separatists
and believes the use of Kurdish fosters separatism. The use
of Arabic, about which there are no such concerns, is not
similarly restricted.
The Government has long been a leader in promoting and
protecting women's rights. Women have full suffrage and
educational rights, have attained high office, and are
represented in all professions and institutions. Women have
served or are currently employed in senior positions as
university rector and dean, ambassador, political party
president, and army colonel. Turkish businesswomen play
significant roles in many industries and sit on the boards of
some of Turkey's largest private firms. Female lawyers and
judges are relatively more common than in the United States,
and female doctors dominate in some specialties.
Nonetheless, the role of women in smaller communities and
rural areas—especially in the east--is still circumscribed by
centuries of patriarchal tradition. Social and cultural
constraints in these areas limit women's equal access to
educational and professional opportunities, the Constitution
and body of law notwithstanding.
CONDITIONS OF LABOR
The Constitution provides for the right to reasonable
conditions of labor suited to the worker's age, sex, and
capacity, and grants the right to rest and leisure and a fair
wage. The Labor Law forbids the employment of children under
13 years of age and restricts children under 15 to "light work
which will not harm their health and physical development,
prevent their attendance at occupational training and
orientation programs, or their ability to benefit from
education." Children between 15 and 18 years of age may not
be employed in underground or underwater work, nor may they be
employed at night. Girls and women may not be employed in
underground or underwater work, but, if over the age of 18,
may work night shifts under conditions specified jointly by
the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the Ministry of
Industry and Commerce.
A board composed of government, private sector, and labor
representatives establishes national minimum wages for the
agricultural and nonagricultural sectors. The Labor Law
provides for a 7 1/2-hour day and a 45-hour workweek.
In spite of constitutional guarantees, specific legal
requirements, and labor union efforts, a considerable gap
remains between ideals and realities of occupational health
and safety levels. Trade unions have repeatedly complained
that existing regulations governing health, safety, and
working conditions are not adequately enforced. Outside the
industrialized sector where unions exercise considerable
influence, legal restrictions are generally ignored both on
occupational health and safety and on child and female
employment. In general, the difference between legal
prohibitions against child labor and its practice is
narrowing. But in the agricultural sector to a large degree,
and to a lesser extent in family-operated commercial
enterprises, young children still work at their parents'
side. During 1987 an illegal market in the services of
children in a provincial town, in which children from villages
were leased to work for nonrelatives during the school
vacation months, received considerable newspaper coverage and
was closed immediately by the Government
