document of convenience. Moreover, it is doubtful whether this document was translated by the sworn translator of the Turkish consulate in Geneva when it was the latter that actually carried out the investigations to find it. The author's fears with regard to these investigations are inconsistent with this request for service. As for the letter from his brother that purports to confirm that the author received call-up papers on two occasions from the Turkish consulate in 1997 and 1998, the State party is not persuaded by the explanation that the brother would have kept these papers if he had foreseen any problems for the author, since it was precisely at the time the papers were issued that the author was appealing against the decision of the Federal Office for Refugees. Moreover, there is an inconsistency surrounding the dates of the call-up papers given by the author and his brother; according to the former they date from 1995 and 1997 whereas according to the latter they date from between 1997 and 1998. 4.14 The State party further emphasizes that recruitment into the Turkish army is carried out solely on the basis of the nationality and birth of conscripts and that, in the light of the system used for registering the population in Turkey, it would be technically impossible to recruit on the basis of membership of an ethnic group. Nor would it be logical to systematically send Kurdish conscripts to south-eastern Turkey, since the Turkish Government requires absolutely loyal and reliable soldiers in that region. Lastly, the courts that are competent to deal with deserters have so far passed very lenient sentences on those refusing the draft. Further comments by the author 5.1 By letter of 25 February 2000, the author commented on the State party's observations on the merits of the communication. 5.2 With regard to the decision of the Swiss Appeal Commission on Asylum Matters, the author gives as an example of a soldier being sent to the east to fight against other Kurds the case of Ali Peduk, cited by Denise Graf, who died in service in summer 1999 from as yet unknown causes. 5.3 With regard to the convocations to the consulate, the author maintains that it was indeed his brother who told him that he had been called up in Turkey and who had received the two convocations, which called on his brother to go to the Turkish consulate in Geneva to explain the author's situation. The consulate had, unfortunately, not kept copies of the convocations, which had been returned to Turkey after one month, in accordance with usual practice. Moreover, the author says he did specify "unless he was mistaken" when giving the dates of 1995 and 1997 for the convocations. The argument put forward by the State party on this point is therefore irrelevant. 5.4 The author recalls that in addition to the sentence of two to three years' imprisonment for draft-evaders, the latter are not released from their military service after serving the sentence; it is precisely this injustice that the author denounces. The author reaffirms that his political activities consisted of taking part in demonstrations and meetings, distributing pamphlets, acting as a host and collecting money. 5.5 With respect to article 3 of the Convention, the author is afraid not only of the sentence for desertion and the torture he will suffer during that sentence but also of being sent to the front and the risk of being killed during a clash. 5.6 With regard to the time lapse between his arrival in Switzerland and his application for asylum, the author had already provided an explanation in his appeal to the Swiss Appeal Commission on Asylum Matters and had explained that the delay was unrelated to the reasons for his application. Also, the author's brother had suggested that he rest before submitting his application because he was scared and stressed. 5.7 On the question of the date of his arrival in Switzerland, the author did not agree that the inspections