REPRESENTATIVE OF SECRETARY-GENERAL ON HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS TO VISIT TURKEY

31 October 2003


The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Human Rights Defenders, Hina Jilani, will undertake a fact-finding mission to the Republic of Turkey from 1 to 10 December 2003 at the invitation of the Government.

With this visit, the Special Representative aims to assess the situation of human rights defenders in the country, and specifically the legal framework in which they work. She will also be looking into allegations of incidents relating to the defence of human rights.
The Special Representative is scheduled to visit Ankara, Istanbul, Diyarbakir and Izmir. She has requested to meet with, among other officials, the Prime Minister; the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, the Interior and Justice; the President of the Grand National Assembly; members of the National Security Council; the President of the Supreme Court; the President of the Constitutional Court; and the President of the State Security Courts. She has also requested to meet with senior officials from the army, the police and gendarmerie, and the chief of the Anti-Terror Branch from the Ministry of Interior. She will also meet with local authorities, representatives of civil society and the press, and with officials of the United Nations and diplomatic missions in the country.

The Special Representative will present the findings and recommendations on her visit to Turkey in a report to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.

Ms. Jilani, an advocate at the Supreme Court of Pakistan, was appointed Special Representative of the Secretary-General in August 2000. This will be her sixth country visit since the creation of her mandate by the Commission on Human Rights in April 2000.