CAT/C/TUR/CO/3
and, if appropriate, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators; and (b) due notification of
the results of such investigations and prosecutions to family members of individuals who
have disappeared. This lack of investigation and follow-up raises serious questions with
respect to the State party’s failure to meet its obligations under the Convention and, as
concluded by the European Court of Human Rights, constitutes a continuing violation with
respect to relatives of the victims (arts. 12 and 13).
The State party should take prompt measures to ensure effective, transparent
and independent investigations into all outstanding cases of alleged
disappearances, including those cited by the European Court of Human Rights
(Cyprus v. Turkey and Timurtas v. Turkey) and those identified by the Working
Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances. As appropriate, the State
party should ecarry out prosecutions. The State party should notify relatives of
the victims of the outcomes of such investigations and prosecutions. The
Committee furthermore calls upon the State party to consider signing and
ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from
Enforced Disappearance.
Extrajudicial killings
10.
The Committee is concerned at the scant information provided by the State party
with respect to the implementation of the recommendation by the Special Rapporteur on the
promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering
terrorism for the State party to undertake impartial, thorough, transparent and prompt
investigations and fair trials in relation to the alleged roles of security forces in incidents of
killings in Kiziltepe and Semdinli in 2004 and 2005 respectively (arts. 12 and 13).
The State party should undertake prompt, thorough and independent
investigations into all alleged cases of extrajudicial killings by security and law
enforcement officers and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice and
punished with penalties appropriate to the nature of their crimes.
Restrictions on fundamental legal safeguards
11.
The Committee is concerned at restrictions in the enjoyment of fundamental legal
safeguards against torture and ill-treatment as a result of the introduction of new laws and
amendments to the 2005 Code of Criminal Procedure. In particular, the Committee is
concerned: (a) at the denial of a suspect’s right to contact a lawyer until 24 hours after
arrest under the Law on Combating Terrorism (Law No. 3713); (b) at the denial of of legal
aid for suspects accused of offences carrying a sentence of less than five years of
imprisonment (Law No. 5560); (c) at the absence of a statutory right to an independent
medical examination; and (d) that the statutory right to immediate access to a medical
doctor is restricted to convicted prisoners (art. 94, Law No. 5275). The Committee is
concerned at reports of the presence of a public official during the medical examination of a
detainee notwithstanding that this is forbidden by law unless the medical personnel so
requests for reasons of personal security. (art. 2)
The State party should ensure by law and in practice that all detainees are
guaranteed the right to have prompt access to a lawyer, to notify a family
member and to an independent medical examination from the very outset of
their detention. The State party should ensure that it upholds patient-doctor
confidentiality during such medical examinations.
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