Request for an International Commission to Investigate Turkey’s Failed Coup of July 15th, 2016

The coup attempt of July 15 2016 was undoubtedly an attack on Turkey’s hard won democratic gains. Though it is regretfully noted that the subsequent government measures indicate a deliberate effort to abuse the atmosphere of fear in order to crackdown on all forms of opposition. In order to legitimate its oppressive measures, the Erdogan regime is insisting that Hizmet Movement and JWF’s Honorary President Mr. Fethullah Gulen was behind the coup attempt, an allegation that is yet to be proven and has received no support from the international community.

The Journalists and Writers Foundation therefore calls for an independent international body to investigate the coup attempt and uncover the many absurdities that the Erdogan regime has failed to explain so far.

Turkey is plagued by a horrifying multitude and cruelty of human rights violations as well as the atmosphere of impunity that facilitates them. Reliable accounts have been reported extensively by a wide spectrum of international advocacy groups and intergovernmental bodies. Besides, under the pretext of an emergency rule that was declared shortly after the coup attempt, policies aimed to consolidate an authoritarian regime that blends hardline nationalist and Islamist components are being imposed on Turkey’s diverse society.

“It appears that; by presenting the recent purges as efforts that target only Hizmet participants; the Turkish government is in fact removing anyone from the bureaucracy who is not loyal to the ruling party; while also intimidating civil society organizations. It is dreadful to see human rights violations occurring in Turkey; including the torture detailed in recent reports by Amnesty International. This is truly a human tragedy” Fethullah Gulen, translated from Le Monde, August 10, 2016

Full call to the UN in PDF format (11 pages)

Published on Journalists and Writers Foundation, 25 September 2017, Monday