Turkey

27.12.2021 - VR-DER- Turkey: The report “Conscientious Objection to Military Service in Turkey- Ülke Group Cases Against Turkey”.

The Association for Conscientious Objection, together with four international organisations, informed the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the developments regarding conscientious objection in Turkey.

Council of Europe to call on Turkey to immediately implement the ECtHR’ s rulings on conscientious objection.

(05.11.2021) In response to a so-called action plan by the Turkish government, theAssociation for Conscientious Objection, based in Istanbul, Turkey,  together with a number of other organisations, submitted a statement to the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers on Wednesday to "request the Turkish government to take legislative measures without delay to recognize the right to conscientious objection to military service." (...more)

7-7-2021 - Webinar: Conscientious objection in Turkey and in exile

Wed., 7th July, 16:00 pm BST, 17:00 pm CEST, 18:00 pm Turkey

We are happy to invite you to a webinar in which conscientious objectors living in Turkey or in exile are given the floor to report about their experiences in the face of multiple repressions in their own country and an uncertain future abroad.

Webinar: Conscientious objection to military service in Turkey - November 7, 2020, 2pm UTC

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This autumn the Conscientious Objection Association (Vicdani Ret Derneği) in Istanbul has launched a new project. The association would like to start a campaign and lobby work to gather international support for pushing the human right to conscientious objection in Turkey. The project also includes research and documentation of the particularly difficult situation of draft evaders and conscientious objectors (COs).

5 November 2019 Information of EBCO's Turkish member organisation VR-DER: Conscientious objector Furkan Çelik indicted on charges of "alienating the public from military service"

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Conscientious Objection (CO) Association (Turkey) member Furkan Çelik was indicted by the Office of Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor on charges of "alienating the public from military service." Furkan Çelik was accused in relation to the social media posts on CO Association's Twitter account.

Brussels 11-10-2019 Turkey: Peace comes with human rights, not with military operations

Responding to the launch of the Turkish military operation against Kurdish forces in northeast Syria, and the increasing suffering of the civilians in the region, EBCO's President Friedhelm Schneider stated today:
“Instead of aggravating the situation in the Syrian conflict region by a military operation cynically named Peace Spring, the Turkish government should refrain from barbarous means of quarreling and finally legalize the right to conscientious objection to military service in conformity with international human rights standards.”
 

Turkey guilty of inhuman treatment of ‘Muslim objector’

The European Court of Human Rights has found Turkey guilty of inhuman treatment of a “Muslim objector” who declined to serve in Turkey’s military due to the country’s secular identity, while ruling that Turkey did not violate the complainant’s freedom of conscience because his objection was based on political grounds.

Declaration Against War of VR-DER - Conscientious Objection Association, Turkey

"VR-DER: Leave Your Units, Refuse The War"

Although nobody remembers in today’s war conditions, it shouldn’t be forgotten that there had been a state of cease fire between the state and PKK, which started in the Newroz of 2013 and lasted for more than two years. After a period of clashes, while Erdogan was talking in public meetings before the 2015 June elections, saying “Give us the 400 (seats), (so that) the issue is settled peacefully” as the head of state; HDP election campaign had the slogan “we will not let you become the president”.

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