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Human Rights Watch: World Report 2025 – Türkiye

  • Writer: NCCA
    NCCA
  • Nov 6
  • 2 min read

Human Rights Watch (HRW), January 2025

Cover image of Human Rights Watch’s World Report 2025, featuring the organization’s blue background and white text logo, symbolizing HRW’s annual review of global human-rights developments.

Overview

In its World Report 2025, Human Rights Watch documents Türkiye’s continued human-rights crisis marked by mass detentions, lack of judicial independence, and ongoing persecution of individuals accused of links to the Hizmet Movement, inspired by scholar Fethullah Gulen.


The report describes how Turkish authorities persist in using counterterrorism laws, defamation statutes, and the disinformation law to suppress dissent and imprison perceived opponents—especially those alleged to have ties to the Gulen-inspired community.


Despite multiple rulings from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) condemning these prosecutions as arbitrary and politically motivated, domestic courts continue to ignore international standards and reconvict victims under the same charges.



Key Findings

  • Mass persecution of Hizmet Movement members: Thousands of people remain imprisoned or under investigation for alleged affiliation with the Hizmet Movement.

  • Scale of imprisonment: As of mid-2024, 13,251 people were detained or serving sentences for alleged Hizmet Movement links, many following unfair or prolonged trials.

  • Ignored European rulings: Turkish courts refused to implement the ECtHR’s landmark Yuksel Yalcınkaya judgment, which found that convicting a teacher solely for using the ByLock messaging app violated fair-trial and freedom-of-association rights. Over 8,000 similar applications are pending in Strasbourg.

  • Judicial politicization: Courts continue to act under executive control, undermining independence and due-process guarantees.

  • Torture and ill-treatment: The UN Committee Against Torture reported widespread abuse in detention facilities and urged Türkiye to stop extrajudicial renditions of people with “perceived or real” Hizmet Movement affiliations.

  • Civil-society repression: Human-rights defenders and organizations face intimidation, closure, and asset freezes, particularly when they advocate for prisoners or families affected by the post-2016 purge.

  • Media censorship: Journalists covering the plight of Hizmet-linked detainees continue to face surveillance, arrest, and broadcast bans under the disinformation and anti-terror laws.



Why It Matters

The World Report 2025 underscores that Türkiye’s crackdown on the Hizmet Movement remains one of the world’s most systematic campaigns of political persecution. The use of anti-terror legislation to criminalize peaceful association, belief, and education reflects a broader collapse of rule of law.


HRW’s findings reinforce a growing body of UN and ECtHR decisions showing that Türkiye’s justice system has become an instrument of punishment rather than protection, targeting citizens for ideology and belief. The continued imprisonment, torture, and exile of those connected—real or perceived—to the Hizmet Movement exemplify the enduring human-rights emergency in the country.




Tags

Human Rights Watch · Türkiye · Hizmet Movement · Fethullah Gülen · Rule of Law · Judicial Independence · Human Rights Violations

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