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UN torture investigator to visit Turkish jails

November 24, 2016 at 3:56 pm

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech at the UN General Assembly Headquarters on September 20th 2016 [Kayhan Özer /Anadolu Agency]

A UN torture investigator is going to Turkey from 27 November to 2 December following an invitation from the government and plans to visit police stations, prisons and pre-trial facilities where detainees are held to discuss “challenges” related to torture, a UN statement said.

Turkey has sacked or suspended more than 125,000 officials in the military, civil service, judiciary and elsewhere since a failed coup attempt in July. About 36,000 have been jailed pending trial, in a crackdown condemned by Western allies and rights groups.

“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,” the independent UN special rapporteur on torture, Nils Melzer, said in a statement.