1.1 The author of the communication is Mr. H.A.D., a Turkish citizen of Kurdish origin born in 1962 and currently residing in Switzerland, where he applied for asylum on 11 March 1991. His application, however, was turned down and he claims that his forcible repatriation to Turkey would constitute a violation by Switzerland of article 3 of the Convention against Torture. He is represented by counsel. 1.2 In accordance with article 22, paragraph 3, of the Convention, the Committee brought the communication to the attention of the State party on 8 February 1999. At the same time, the State party was requested, pursuant to article 108, paragraph 9, of the Committee's rules of procedure, not to expel the author to Turkey while his communication was under consideration. On 6 April 1999, the State party notified the Committee that steps had been taken to ensure that the author was not returned to Turkey while his case was pending before the Committee. The facts as submitted by the author 2.1 The author comes from the south-eastern part of Turkey. His family owns a farm in the village of Bazlama, in the Karakocan region of Elazig province in south-eastern Turkey, an area traditionally inhabited by the Kurds. 2.2 When the author was living in Turkey, most of the members of his family had problems with the authorities. His older brother Y., an active supporter of the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) since 1979, joined the PKK fighters in 1986 and was killed during a battle on 13 February 1995. His father died on 15 January 1980, three months after surviving a month in prison, where he had been tortured. He had been arrested on account of his son Y.'s activities in the PKK. The circumstances surrounding their father's death traumatized the author's younger brother, V., an asylum-seeker in Switzerland. At the age of nine, V. was unable to talk for several months following his father's arrest by the security forces. He has been suffering since then from chronic psychological problems, for which he has needed psychiatric help, including in Switzerland. The only brother of the author to stay in Turkey had to change his surname in order to avoid further persecution. The author's wife was forced to agree to a divorce for the same reasons. Lastly, the author cites the names of several other members of his family who were refugees in Switzerland or who were killed by the Turkish army. 2.3 In 1985, the author was jailed about one month after the arrest of a cousin, N.S., who today has refugee status in Switzerland, on charges of acting as a guide (or "pathfinder"a) to this cousin and other guerrillas in 1984. During his detention, he was ill-treated and tortured. The doctor's observations on the medical certificate he has produced can only be interpreted as referring to the effects of the torture to which he was subjected. The author emphasizes that such observations of torture cannot be confirmed by a doctor without endangering the latter's life.b 2.4 Later, he took part in the 1991 spring festivities (Newroz), which had been moved forward to January for political reasons. The festivities came to an end when the security forces arrived. One guerrilla and two soldiers were killed. The author managed to escape undetected; he went back to Istanbul and left the country as he was afraid he would be persecuted again for taking part in the festivities. 2.5 The author applied for asylum in Switzerland on 11 March 1991. He was questioned on 15 May 1991 and 29 March 1994. The author stresses that these rounds of questioning were difficult for him because of his a The word used in the original communication. b See Vincent Iacopino, "Torture in Turkey and its unwilling accomplices", Physicians for Human Rights, 1996, pp. 4-9. 126