At least 252 curfews declared in Turkey in last two years

ISTANBUL

More than 250 curfews were declared in Turkey over the last two years, according to the information gathered by the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT) Documentation Center.

The foundation said that between Aug. 16, 2015 and Aug. 16 of this year, there have been at least 252 officially confirmed round-the-clock and open-ended curfews in 11 provinces and at least 45 districts. 

Turkey has been declaring curfews in many districts of the eastern and southeastern provinces as part of the security operations against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The HRFT said that after the peace process between the PKK and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) collapsed after the June 7, 2015 general elections, the first round-the-clock and open-ended curfews were declared on Aug. 16, 2015.

“These are violating the Constitution, European Convention on Human Rights and all the other international obligations of Turkey within the field of basic rights and liberties,” the foundation said in its report dated Aug. 17.

According to the HRFT, nearly two million people were affected by the curfews. 

“It is estimated that, according to the 2014 population census, at least 1,809,000 residents have been affected by these curfews and fundamental rights of these people such as right to liberty and security of person, right to privacy, family, home or correspondence, freedom of assembly and association, freedom of religion, freedom to receive and impart information, right to reserve property, right to education and especially right to life, right to health and prohibition of torture are explicitly violated,” it said. 

The foundation said that the people killed during the curfews “were kept on the streets for days and no ambulances were called nor were demands of treatment met for those wounded.”

The highest number of curfews was declared in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır with 136 curfews in 11 districts. Diyarbakır was followed by the neighboring province of Mardin with 42 times.

“Yet, it is not possible to update this data since the regions of the curfews slid to the villages and flatlands in 2016, with the reason that their population census was either not taken or not released to the public,” the report said.