Summary of Interviews with Detainees
1. Male, Age 35, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Izmir; September 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/or Release: fifteen, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: thirteenth day
Charges: Article 169 (aiding and abetting an illegal organization)
Days under Torture/Methods of torture suffered: eleven; beatings, electric shock, high-pressure water, blindfold, noise, sleep deprivation, held naked
Signed statement under torture.
2. Male, Age 29, farmer, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Village of Silvan District, Diyarbakir Province; April 1995
Detaining Unit: gendarmerie
Days in Detention before Arrest and Appearance before Prosecutor/ or Release: eighteen, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: after arrest.
Charges: Article 169 (aiding and abetting an illegal organization)
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: four; electric shock, water, stripped naked, beating, squeezing testicles
Signed statement under torture.
3. Male, age 26, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Izmir; November 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention Before Arrest and Appearance before Prosecutor/Release: four
Contact with lawyer: seventh day
Charges: Article 169 (aiding and abetting an illegal organization)
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: three; death threats, beatings, squeezing testicles, suffocation (bag over head, face pressed into foam), hanging, high-pressure water, electric shock
stripped naked
Signed statement under torture.
4. Male, age 48, farmer, forced migrant from Southeast, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Tunceli; March 1994
Detaining Unit: Initially gendarmerie, immediately transferred to anti-terror police
Days in Detention Before Arrest and Appearance before Prosecutor/Release: three
Contact with Lawyer: none
Charges: None, released on third day
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: three days; blindfold, beating, stripped naked, hanging, pressurized water
5. Male, age 36, hotel worker, forced migrant from Southeast, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; June 1995
Detaining Unit: regular police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: 14 hours
Contact with Lawyer: none
Charges: none, released.
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: on/off during detention period; beating, blindfold, falaka
6. Male, age 35, lawyer, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; July 1995. Interrogation in Bitlis
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: twelve
Contact with Lawyer: yes
Charges: none
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: three; stripped naked, blindfold, electric shock, beaten
7. Male, age 31, newspaper distributor/tobacco farmer, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Silvan, Diyarbakir; September 1993
Detaining Unit: gendarmerie, transferred to anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: sixteen, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: after being brought before judge.
Charges: Article 168, member of an illegal organization
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: thirteen; beating, blindfold, high-pressure water, squeezing testicles, hanging, electricity, anal rape with truncheon, placement in tire
Statement taken under torture.
8. Male, age 28, journalist, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Adana; September 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: one
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none filed, released
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: one; beating, high-pressure water, blindfold, hanging
9. Male, age 24, musician, Turkish
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; September 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: one
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none filed, released
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: one; beating, electric shock, squeezing testicles, stripped naked, blindfold
10. Male, age 21, factory worker, Turkish
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; September 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: one, released
Contact with Lawyer: yes
Charges: putting up posters without a permit
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: one; beating, kicking, pulling hair, blindfolding
11. Male, age 22, factory worker, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; September 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: one, released
Contact with Lawyer: yes
Charges: Putting up posters without a permit.
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: one; high-pressure water, beating with fists and nightstick, death threat and rape threat, hanging
12. Male, mid-30s, ngo cultural representative, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Adana; November 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: seven, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: eighth day
Charges: Article 169, aid to an illegal group
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: two; high-pressure water, hanging, electric shock, beating, threats, blindfolding
Signed Statement under torture
13. Female, age 13, student, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Adana; October 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: four hours
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: Pulling hair, hitting with hands, death threat
14. Female, age 28, housewife, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Adana; June 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: three hours
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: beating, pulling hair, death threat
15. Female, age 43, teacher/labor union activist, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Diyarbakir; March 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: ten, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: Article 168, membership in an illegal organization
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: nine; beating, hanging, threats, blindfold, electric shock
16. Male, age 52, shopkeeper, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: K2z2ltepe, Mardin Province; November 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before Arrest/Release: four, released
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: three; beating, hanging, electric shock
17. Female, age early-20s, student/human rights worker, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Adana; Summer 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before appearance before prosecutor and Arrest/Release: two, released
Contact with Lawyer: no
Charges: none
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: one; electric shock, beating, hanging, high-pressure water, threats
18. Female, age 33, factory worker, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Tunceli; March 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before appearance before prosecutor and Arrest/ or Release: eleven, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: yes
Charges: Article 168, membership in an illegal organization, arrested. Acquitted of charges in late 1995
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: five; electric shock, threats, beating, hanging, high-pressure water
Signed statement under torture
19. Male, mid-20s, human rights worker, ethnic Kurd
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Diyarbakir; February 1995
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before appearance before prosecutor and Arrest/ or Release: five, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: after arrest
Charges: Article 168, membership in an illegal organization
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: two; hanging, electric shock, high-pressure water, squeezing genitals, threats
Statement signed under torture
20. Male, age 34, political party activist, Kurdish
Place of Detention/Date of Detention: Istanbul; December 1994
Detaining Unit: anti-terror police
Days in Detention before appearance before prosecutor and Arrest/Release: fourteen, arrested
Contact with Lawyer: After arrest
Charges: Article 168, membership in an illegal organization
Days under Torture/Methods of Torture: six; electric shock, hanging, high-pressure water, death threats, mock execution, beating
Signed statement under torture
UNOFFICIAL TRANSLATION, Law of March 1997 Amending the Code of Criminal Procedure (CMUK)
"Law concerning amending the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Law on the Creation of State Security Courts and their Judicial Procedures and Law No. 3842 of November 18, 1992, which amended the aforementioned laws." [Passed by the Parliament of Turkey on March 6, 1997]
Article 1: The first sentence of the first paragraph and the second sentence of the second paragraph of Article 128 of Code of Criminal Procedure, Law No. 1412 of April 4, 1929 will be amended in the manner below.
"If the detained suspect is not released, within twenty four hours he will be brought before a magistrate and questioned (excluding time necessary in reaching the magistrate nearest the point of detention)."
"If the investigation is not completed within this period of time, it can be extended to seven days by request of a state prosecutor and the decision of a magistrate."
Article 2: The phrase, "in the 384th and 385th articles" will be removed from the text of sub-paragraph (a) of the first paragraph of Article 9 of the Law on the Creation of State Security Courts and their Judicial Procedures, Law No. 2845 of June 18, 1983.
Article 3: Article 31 of Law No. 3842 of November 18, 1992 and annulled Article 16 of Law No. 2854, together with its heading, shall be amended in the manner below:
"Detention, Arrest, and Conferring with Legal Counsel Article 16:"
"An individual detained or arrested for crimes under the jurisdiction of State Security Courts shall be brought before a magistrate no later than within forty-eight hours and questioned (excluding time necessary in reaching the magistrate nearest the point of detention or arrest).
In crimes committed collectively by three or more persons, or where there are difficulties in gathering evidence, or where there are numerous suspects, or for similar reasons, the state prosecutor can give a written order to extend this period to four days. If the investigation is not completed within this time, the detention period can be extended to seven days by the request of a state prosecutor and the order of a judge.
With respect to persons detained or arrested in areas where a State of Emergency has been declared according to Article 120 of the Constitution, the seven day period indicated in the second paragraph [of Article 3 of this law] may be extended to ten days by request of a state prosecutor and decision of a judge.
An arrested suspect can meet with his lawyer at all times. The same right applies to an individual in detention after a judge has given his decision to extend the period of detention.
Until a public trial has been opened, a judge may withhold from the suspect information which he [the judge] feels inappropriate for the suspect to know. Where the reason for the arrest so requires, a judge in person, or his deputy, or a judge appointed as a proxy may be present when the defendant confers with legal counsel."
Article 4: Articles numbered "7," "9," and "20" shall be removed from the text of Article 31 of the Law No. 3842 of November 18, 1992, concerning amending several articles of the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Law on the Creation of State Security Courts and their Judicial Procedures.
Article 5: Article 30 of Law No. 3842 shall be abolished.
Article 6: This law goes into effect upon the date of its publication. [in the Official Gazette]
Article 7: The Council of Ministers will carry out the provisions of this law.