TIHV (Human Rights Foundation of Turkey – HRFT) Amed representative lawyer Murat Aba shared the data of those who applied to their foundation exposing the torture that the Turkish state used to suppress social demands. "Our foundation – he said - received 270 torture applications since the beginning of 2023."

The data of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, which keeps a tally of the torture used by the Turkish state and provides treatment and rehabilitation support to the victims of torture, shows that thousands of people have been subjected to various types of torture. According to the data of TIHV, 201 people applied in 2022, but from January to May 2023, there were 270 applications.

Torture is increasing

Speaking to ANF, lawyer Murat Aba, said: "This is the highest number of applications received by the foundation. Of the 1,079 people who were directly tortured, 547 of them were tortured in police headquarters, 61 in police stations, and 69 in gendarmerie units under official detention. 331 people were tortured in the detention and transportation vehicles of law enforcement officers. Torture has increased. Of course, these figures are those collected by all the representatives of the foundation and the data of those released from detention. There are also those who were tortured and arrested in custody. Naturally, they cannot apply to us. So we actually know that the numbers are much higher."

Figures not clear

The figures for 2023 will also increase, said Aba, adding that the Amed representative could not receive applications for months during the earthquake process. The lawyer added: "The earthquake had a special impact on the Diyarbakir office, and it affected the whole of Turkey. Because the building where our representative office is located is just behind the Diyar Galeria site, which was destroyed in the earthquake and remained closed for months. The whole area was closed. Entry to and exit from our Foundation was also prohibited. For this reason, the foundation was closed for two months. In addition, we are located on the 14th floor and the lift had problems even after we were able to open again. As a result, we could not receive applications for several months due to this problem."

Prisoners in jail for 30 years also apply

Aba said that there have been prisoners in jail for 30 years who also applied to the foundation. "We receive about 50 applications in Diyarbakir. The applicants have been in prison for 30 years, their health rights have been violated for decades. In fact, these people are denied the right to receive treatment for 30 years. Clearly, this is torture. They are freed and suffer from multiple diseases. Once released, they need to try to adapt to city life. We do our best to facilitate this through our social workers, mental health professionals and doctors."