Rights violations in Turkish Army listed

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

The report relies on 432 ex-soldiers’ claims of maltreatment during army services.

Some 32 Turkish soldiers committed suicide for “suspicious reasons” during their compulsory military services, according to a statistical study by a the Rights of Conscripts Initiative, a group backed by the Human Rights Watch, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly and other rights groups in Turkey.

The report relies on 432 former soldiers’ claims of maltreatment endured during their military services. The report revealed the first statistical report on human rights violations committed against soldiers in the Turkish Armed Forces in 2012.

Some 48 percent of applications included complaints of insults, while 39 percent of applications included complaints of beatings. Some 16 percent of applications included complaints of forced excessive physical activity and 15 percent of applications included complaints of denial of access to proper health care.
Applications were received through the website askerhaklari.com for alleged violations of rights during compulsory military service in the period between April 25, 2011 and April 24, 2012. Ankara, Turkish Cyprus and Izmir placed at the top of the list where Conscript made applications for maltreatment.