German government report highlights Erdogan's desire to kidnap opponents abroad

Levent Kenez/Stockholm

The German government's latest report on global religious freedom, covering the period 2020-2022, highlights human rights violations of non-Sunni groups and minorities in Turkey. The report also addresses the persecution faced by the Glen movement, a group critical of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to the report, the Turkish The state does not hesitate to kidnap Glenists abroad. The report will be discussed on April 24 at the Human Rights Committee of the Federal Parliament.

The report claims that since the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, the Turkish government has intensified its crackdown on individuals associated with the Glen movement, which it describes as a terrorist organization.

According to the report, the treatment of suspected supporters of Fethullah Glen, a Turkish cleric who inspired the movement, differs significantly from that of other Muslim religious groups. The Glen movement has been labeled a terrorist organization by Turkish authorities, a designation that is not universally recognized, the report said.

Chapter of the German government report on Turkey:

German government report 2024

The report mentions that hundreds of thousands of people have been arrested, convicted, fired, banned from traveling and lost their benefits. The government's persecution explicitly targets not only those involved in the coup attempt, but also everyone connected to the preacher. The report also highlights Turkish actions against Glen's supporters and affiliated institutions abroad, which have been well documented. According to the report, in some cases the Turkish state has even resorted to kidnapping prominent Glenists abroad. Non-governmental organizations, the report states, have reported cases of abuse and torture suffered by those affected.

International reports have already shown that dissidents abroad have been illegally kidnapped by the Turkish Intelligence Organization (MT) and diplomats coordinated by Erdogan's government.

In 2020, UN experts Luciano Hazan, chair of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; Felipe Gonzlez Morales, special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants; Fionnuala N Aolin, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the fight against terrorism; and Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, jointly addressed the Turkish government regarding their apprehensions regarding the “systematic practice of state-sponsored extraterritorial abductions and forced return of Turkish nationals from various countries to Turkey”.

Similarly, during its 87th session from April 27 to May 1, 2020, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention determined that the incarceration of three individuals linked to the Hizmet/Glen movement was arbitrary, lacked legal justification and contravened the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Human rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The group stressed that people allegedly affiliated with the movement are targeted based on their political or other beliefs, which constitutes a prohibited discriminatory basis.

The UN rapporteurs highlighted in their correspondence that Turkey has allegedly concluded bilateral security cooperation agreements with several countries for the expulsion or kidnapping of Turkish citizens and inquired about the compatibility of these agreements with the country's international human rights commitments. They also requested clarification on the involvement of the Turkish MIT and other entities in these kidnapping operations. “It appears that, in collaboration with other countries, the Turkish government has forcibly transported more than 100 Turkish nationals to Turkey, including 40 people who have disappeared under duress, often abducted from the streets or their residences around the world whole, including their children. » says the letter.

In June 2023, a report written by British lawmaker Christopher Chope for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) highlighted the MT's role in kidnapping critics in other countries, in blatant violation of laws international and national.

The report, while recognizing previous efforts of Council of Europe (CoE) bodies, was the first to comprehensively address transnational repression and discuss legal guidance. It asserts that transnational repression is a global phenomenon that attacks the foundations of democratic societies and the rule of law, and that strengthened and better coordinated action is needed to prevent and combat it.

PACE called on countries allegedly engaged in transnational repression to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice and that victims receive reparations. To better prevent and combat transnational repression, it recommends that all states develop legal guidance for government agencies and impose targeted sanctions. And expel diplomats who have been directly involved in incidents of transnational repression.

On 26 October 2023, the UK Home Office published an updated national policy and information note regarding the Glen movement in Turkey, revealing numerous human rights violations suffered by its members since the attempt coup d'état of July 2016.

Following the attempted coup, the government launched a crackdown on individuals and organizations associated with the Glen movement. This has led to hundreds of thousands of arrests and detentions, with more than 117,000 convictions under anti-terrorism laws, the dismissal of more than 130,000 civil servants, the revocation of more than 230,000 passports, the closure of businesses and of institutions followed by seizures of assets and the prosecution of Turkish nationals residing abroad,” the report states. He noted that detentions had increased in recent years, particularly in 2023, due to the arrests of individuals helping the families of those imprisoned for alleged links to Glen and of people accused of manipulating the financial aid of Glen's supporters abroad.

Additionally, the report referenced a European Commission publication documenting an increase in “credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment in detention centers and prisons”, as well as a US State Department report stating a higher risk of ill-treatment and potential torture for those suspected of being victims of torture. Links to Glen's movement while in custody.

The Home Office also flagged legal issues surrounding the trials of Glen's alleged affiliates, such as the retroactive criminalization of prior legal activities and the questionable nature of the evidence used against them.

The report also addresses Turkey's transnational repression campaign, noting that it has led to the extradition of more than 100 citizens from numerous countries.

On November 25, 2022, then-Vice President Fuat Oktay told a parliamentary committee meeting that MT had ensured the extradition of more than 100 Glen members from various countries to Turkey. However, it is widely recognized that what Oktay calls “extradition” is in fact synonymous with kidnapping. These countries mainly include some in Africa and others in Central Asia.