The report Conscientious Objection to Military Service in Turkey, released this week, is part of the "Campaign to Support the Right to Conscientious Objection in Turkey".

Published by the Conscientious Objection Association and prepared by Dr. Mine Yıldırım and Hülya Üçpınar, the report offers detailed information and findings about the violations of rights and juridical processes experienced by conscientious objectors in Turkey.

The report was compiled from interviews with 18 conscientious objectors and lawyers and examines a total of  85 conscientious objectors cases. As indicated in the report, to date, conscientious objectors have made 45 separate applications to the Constitutional Court.

The report has found that conscientious objectors whose cases are examined in the report have been fined a total of 575,517 Turkish Liras (some 55,815 Euros). The report includes information and stories from conscientious objectors including anti-militarists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and those objecting based on their Islamic belief.

Among other things, the report recommends that "conscientious objection to military service be recognized as a constitutional right, without delay, to ensure that legislation on conscientious objection does not come into conflict with other legal regulations and that such regulation is not made open to, possibly restrictive, interpretations of the executive and judicial bodies."