Amnesty International Turkey Director, Seven Other Human Rights Defenders Detained in Istanbul

Amnesty Secretary General Calls for Their Immediate and Unconditional Release

LONDON, U.K. (Amnesty International)—Idil Eser, the Director of Amnesty International Turkey, was detained on June 5 along with seven other human rights defenders and two trainers during a digital security and information management workshop in Büyükada, Istanbul.

Idil Eser (Photo: Amnesty International)

“We are profoundly disturbed and outraged that some of Turkey’s leading human rights defenders, including the Director of Amnesty International Turkey should have been detained so blatantly without cause,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General Salil Shetty.

Shetty called the detention a “grotesque abuse of power” and said that the arrests highlight the dangerous situation facing human rights activists in Turkey. “Idil Eser and those detained with her, must be immediately and unconditionally released,” Shetty said.

“World leaders currently sitting in Hamburg have been remarkably tolerant of Turkey’s human rights meltdown. With President [Recep Tayyip] Erdoğan now in their midst, this would be a good time to speak out firmly and call for the release of all human rights defenders currently behind bars,” Shetty added.

The whereabouts of Idil Eser and the others detained alongside her are currently unknown.

Idil Eser and the other detainees, are understood to have been denied access to lawyers, which police are entitled to do for 24 hours, and the right to contact a family member, which must be granted immediately.

Police have told lawyers that they will be given information at 2: 30 p.m.

In addition to Idil Eser, the seven human rights defenders detained were: İlknur Üstün, Women’s Coalition, Günal Kurşun , lawyer, Human Rights Agenda Association, Nalan Erkem, Lawyer, Citizens Assembly, Nejat Taştan, Equal Rights Watch Association , Özlem Dalkıran, Citizens’ Assembly, Şeyhmuz Özbekli, lawyer, Veli Acu, Human Rights Agenda Association.

Two foreign trainers—a German and a Swedish national—as well as the hotel owner, were also detained.

“The United States is deeply concerned by the July 5, detention of prominent human rights defenders from Amnesty International Turkey and other respected institutions,” read a statement released by U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert. “As with past arrests of prominent human rights defenders, journalists, academics, and activists, we underscore the importance of respecting due process and individual rights, as enshrined in the Turkish Constitution, and consistent with Turkey’s own international commitments. As we have expressed on numerous occasions, persistent curbs on freedom of expression erode the foundations of democratic society. More voices, not fewer, are necessary in challenging times,” continued the statement.

The detentions come less than a month after Amnesty International’s Turkey chair, Taner Kiliç, was remanded in prison custody on baseless charges.