Turkey

CCPR/C/TUR/CO/1
1 November 2012

(...)

10. The Committee is concerned about the discrimination and alleged acts of violence against people on the basis of their gender identity and sexual orientation, and about the social stigmatization and social exclusion of LGBT persons in terms of their access to health services, education, or to their treatment in the context of the regulations concerning compulsory military service and while serving in the military. (arts. 2 and 26)

Joint press release from War Resisters' International, IHD, International Fellowship of Reconciliation, Istanbul LGBTT, International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, and the Centre for Civil and Political Rights

Geneva 17-18 October 2012.

Within Turkish society, which is dominated by a spiral of 'masculinity' and 'military service', sexism and homophobia are ever present. Militarist institutions humiliate and label homosexuals, they treat them carelessly and make their life miserable, especially when it comes to the 'military service'. Firstly, the army as an institution has been presented as a gift that remains out of reach if one is gay.

On 17 July, the European Court of Human Rights published its judgment in the case of Tarhan vs Turkey, again finding on a violation of article 9 (Freedom of thought, conscience and religion) of the European Convention on Human Rights, and in addition of article 3 (prohibition of torture or inhuman treatment) of the Convention.

The series of jurisprudence by international bodies in relation to conscientious objection in Turkey continued in the last months. Following the recent judgements of the European Court of Human Rights in cases of conscientious objectors from Turkey - Demirtaş v. Turkey from 17 January 2012 and Erçep v. Turkey from 22 November 2011, the Human Rights Committee published its views on the case of Turkish conscientious objectors Cenk Atasoy and Arda Sarkut in June.

Following the recent judgements of the European Court of Human Rights in cases of conscientious objectors from Turkey - Demirtaş v. Turkey from 17 January 2012 and Erçep v. Turkey from 22 November 2011 - two Turkish military courts have now for the first time recognised the right to conscientious objection, albeit with serious and highly problematic limitations.

The judgements

Views of the Human Rights Committee under article 5, paragraph 4, of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (104th session)

concerning Communications Nos. 1853/2008 and 1854/2008*

The Human Rights Committee, established under article 28 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

Meeting on 29 March 2012,

Interim resolutions: CM/ResDH(2007)109 ; CM/ResDH(2009)45

DD(2009)556; DD(2010)107, DH-DD(2011)600

Decisions

The Deputies

1. noted that, in response to the question raised by the Committee at the 1128th meeting (December 2011) (DH), the Turkish authorities stated that there was a valid arrest warrant against the applicant for desertion;

On 2 February 2012, the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, demanded that the right to conscientious objection to military service should be guaranteed in all parts of Europe. In his blog post, he stated:

"People should not be imprisoned when their religious or other convictions prevent them from doing military service. Instead they should be offered a genuinely civilian alternative. This is now the established European standard, respected in most countries – but there are some unfortunate exceptions."

Following the Grand Chamber judgment in the case of Bayatyan v Armenia from July 2011, in which the European Court of Human Rights for the first time recognised the right to conscientious objection as a right recognised under Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights (see CO-Update No 67, August 2011), several chambers of the European Court have no consolidated this new jurisprudence of the Court.

Following the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Bayatyan v. Armenia in July 2011, and even more so the judgment in the case of Erçep v. Turkey from November 2011, some human rights and conscientious objection activists in Turkey pushed again for the recognition of the right to conscientious objection.

Dear Press Representatives,

We, conscientious objectors and antimilitarists of Turkey who oppose compulsory military service based on various motivations as beliefs, political and conscientious convictions held a meeting in Istanbul on 25-26 February 2012 with the participation of representatives from the Quaker United Nations Office, Amnesty International, the War Resisters’ International and Connection e.V.