Human Rights in Turkey

The book provides the historical setting of Turkey related to the development of democracy, human rights issues, the treatment of cultural and ethnic minorities, and the short- and long-term consequences of the crackdown including impacts on individuals, institutions like education and the media, the criminal justice system, the economy, and Turkey’s standing in the international community. Since the foundation of the Republic of Turkey, the military and the media have been the main traditional powers of oppressive, secularist, and nationalist regimes in the country. After a period of initial reforms, rather than eliminating the structures of the authoritarian state, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan seized the levers of power and used them aggressively against his political enemies. He turned Turkey into a one-man regime after the failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016, and his actions included the widespread violation of human rights.

This book tells the tale of the consequences of the measures taken after the failed coup attempt that have adversely impacted the development of democracy and human rights in Turkey, altering the nation’s course of history. Beginning with a State of Emergency that was declared in July of 2016, Turkey has moved to a more authoritarian state. Among the consequences of the actions taken have been imprisonment of hundreds of thousands, the shuttering of media, the dismissal of public employees, the dismissal of academics, jailed elected Kurdish politicians, and the misuse of the criminal justice to victimize the population. Adverse effects have included widespread violations of human rights, torture, and mistreatment of prisoners, false imprisonment, and the absence of the right to a fair trial. This book examines some of the thorniest questions of Turkish democratization and human rights, including the underlying reasons for the decay of democracy and what has happened as a result of this decay. Among these is a deterioration of the educational system, a reduction in economic stability, the absence of the rule of law and due process, a radical transformation of the country, and violations of universal human rights.