UN Special Rapporteur on torture to visit Turkey

GENEVA (24 November 2016) – United Nations Special Rapporteur Nils Melzer will visit Turkey from 27 November to 2 December to identify and assess the main developments and challenges related to torture and ill-treatment in the country.

“I look forward to engaging with the Turkish Government on how to meet the challenges of upholding the rule of law, promoting accountability, and fulfilling the right of reparations for victims, in particular in the aftermath of the attempted coup in July of this year,” said the independent expert tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with monitoring and reporting on the use of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment around the world.

During his visit, Mr. Melzer will meet with relevant authorities and human rights institutions, as well as with local and international civil society organizations, victims and their families. The special rapporteur, who is visiting Turkey at the invitation of the Government, will also travel to various provinces to conduct visits to places of detention such as police stations, pre-trial facilities and prisons.

The Special Rapporteur will host a press conference to share his preliminary comments and recommendations on his visit to Turkey on Friday 2 December 2016, at 14:00 at the UN House, Birlik Mah. Katar Cad. No: 11, Çankaya, Ankara.

The Special Rapporteur will present a final report on his main findings and recommendations to the Human Rights Council in March 2018.

ENDS

Mr. Nils Melzer (Switzerland) was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council as the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in November 2016. Mr. Melzer has previously worked for the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and is currently the Human Rights Chair of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. Learn more, log on to: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/SRTorture/Pages/SRTortureIndex.aspx

The Special Rapporteurs and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity. Learn more, log on to: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Welcomepage.aspx 

For more information and media requests please contact Alia El Khatib (+41 79 752 0486/ aelkhatib@ohchr.org) and/or Ahmet Parla, UNIC Ankara, ( 0533 500 1497 / unic.ankara@unic.org )

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