Turkey accounted for over a third of all prisoners in Europe, having experienced a surge of 369 percent in its prison population between 2005 and 2022.
According to the Human Rights Association's Prison Commission, political prisoners in Turkey face are often prevented from parole because the government manipulates the parole boards.
Erdogan's AKP government has allocated 13.7 billion lire to construct 12 new prisons in 2024. Turkey had 405 prisons in October 2023.
After the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, Erdogan jailed tens of thousands of people on terrorism charges, despite being only critical of the government, and innocent of all criminal activity.
Turkey remains the biggest jailer of journalists in the world, according to journalists and human rights organizations.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Turkey released 90,000 prisoners convicted of crimes but specifically excluded the release of any political prisoners, including human rights defenders, journalists, political leaders, academics, and lawyers targeted by Turkey's overly broad "anti-terror" legislation.
According to the European Court of Human Rights, the presence of military judges in the Turkish State Security Court violates the fair trial principles set out in Article 6 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
On January 22, 2024, the Platform for an Independent Judiciary in Turkey released a statement on the rule of law in Turkey. The report described a systemic pattern of disregard for fundamental principles of fair trial by Turkish courts at every level. The report called for immediate attention to the principles of justice, human rights, and democracy.
Republican People's Party, CHP, was established in 1923 under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, and known to the nation as 'Ataturk'.
In 1927, Ataturk gave a speech highlighting the reasons for the dissolving of the Ottoman Empire. He stated that he entrusted the Turkish youth to protect the young Republic.
The founding philosophy of the Republic of Turkey was a secular state.
"The party considered the separation of religion and state in state and national affairs as one of the most important principles," said Ataturk.
Erdogan's Justice and Development Party, AKP, is from an Islamic tradition and became prominent in the elections held in 2002 when it received 34% of the votes, then in 2007 it reached 47% and the party received almost 50% of the votes in the 2011 elections.
AKP has installed its Islamist and sectarian supporters in key positions in the state institutions, and using its ruling position, especially in the police services, intelligence services, prosecutors, and judges, it imposed punishments on some segments of the society, which believed in democracy and the democratic order.
The future of Turkey hangs in the balance. The voters want a return to a secular and democratic government. The next election will be a course correction in the Turkish journey.
Steven Sahiounie is a two-time award-winning journalist
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