Shock from the UN to Ankara!.. 'Release Akın Öztürk'...

The United Nations Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has ruled that former Air Force Commander Akın Öztürk, who was sentenced to 141 aggravated life sentences and thousands of years in prison on charges of being the "number 1" of the July 15 coup attempt, was arrested arbitrarily and without reasonable suspicion, and was not given a fair trial. The group ordered his immediate release, the payment of compensation to Öztürk, and the opening of an investigation into those responsible for these violations. The decision also noted that the government failed to refute Öztürk's claims.

This decision, taken by the UN Working Group during its 100th session held between August 26-30, 2024, was recently communicated to Akın Öztürk's lawyers.

The 13-page decision first included the following accounts from Öztürk's lawyers:

- That Akın Öztürk served as Air Force Commander between 2013-2015, was appointed as a member of the Supreme Military Council (YAŞ) in 2015, and after leaving the Air Force Command, he had no personnel under his command other than his military aides, and was in a semi-retired position...

- That when he was informed by one of his aides at 21:32 on July 15 that there was an attack on the General Staff, he tried to gather more information from the Air Force Operations Center and other high-ranking officers, and that he went to Akıncı Air Base at 23:00 at the request of the then-Air Force Commander...

- That he tried to stop the coup attempt until the morning at Akıncı under the instructions of the then-Chief of General Staff...

- That after the coup attempt was ended the next day, the Chief of General Staff planned to go to the Prime Ministry with him, but “after meeting with other officials, he suddenly changed his mind” and told Öztürk to stay at Akıncı, saying he would have him picked up within an hour, and that afterwards, the helicopter Öztürk boarded to go to the Prime Ministry was fired upon and Öztürk was wounded in the leg...

- That Öztürk, who remained at Akıncı, found some high-ranking officers who were being held hostage there, released them, and left Akıncı with them under police protection...

- That throughout this process, state media launched a campaign against Öztürk and declared him the leader of the coup...

- That Akın Öztürk's efforts to suppress the coup attempt were emphasized in both General Staff and Air Force statements...

''TORTURE... SPECIAL CARE... WALK OF SHAME''

The lawyers also made the following claims in summary regarding Akın Öztürk's detention, arrest, and trial process:

- Öztürk, who went home on the evening of July 16 and spent the night with his family, was summoned to the Central Command around 02:00 on July 17. However, when he went there, he was immediately detained without any decision or order...

- After being stripped in detention, he was subjected to ill-treatment and various methods of torture. Police officers told Öztürk that they had received special orders to provide him with “special care”... Acid was poured on his nails, and he was severely beaten by police officers and other detainees forced by the police... He was arrested without any concrete evidence being shown... He was held in strict isolation conditions in prison for 10 months and 8 days...

- During the trial phase; his defenses were not taken into account... Important witnesses were heard not in the courtroom, but in a special session... Instead of the 319 hours of raw camera footage from the night of July 15, 101 hours of edited recordings were shared... It turned out that the experts who watched the footage were members of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), and even complainants in the case file...

- Akın Öztürk was brought to the hearing in the middle of an angry crowd and at the very front in a “walk of shame”. He was subjected to insults throughout the hearing...

- While Akın Öztürk was held responsible for the deaths of 140 people, no autopsy or ballistic examination was performed regarding the deaths of these individuals...

- The President of the Court, who initially decided to arrest some of the defendants and later conducted the trial, was promoted and elected as a member of the Court of Cassation after the verdict...

Finally, his lawyers alleged that Akın Öztürk “was discriminated against due to his political and other views and was targeted and deprived of his liberty because he opposed certain types of operations.”

DID THE GOVERNMENT NOT OBJECT?

The decision continued with the government's response to these allegations.

It was stated that the Working Group had forwarded the allegations in question to the government on February 20, 2024, and requested detailed information by April 20, 2024, “regarding the current situation of Akın Öztürk and the legal provisions justifying the continuation of his detention,” that the deadline was extended to May 20 upon the government's request on April 11, but since the response arrived on May 23, it was “not possible to consider it as having been submitted in accordance with the methods, and therefore it was decided to issue an opinion.” After this, the following evaluations were made in summary regarding the government's stance and the responses provided:

“The government's sole claims that legal procedures were followed are not sufficient to refute the source's allegations... In the present case, the Government has chosen not to contest the prima facie credible allegations made within the time limit provided by the source... The Working Group wishes to remind the government, in response to its request for special procedures to ensure that the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization and its members are not allowed to abuse these mechanisms and that their allegations are rejected, that the Human Rights Council has given it the authority to receive and evaluate arbitrary detention allegations from all over the world. The Working Group therefore makes no distinction as to who can or cannot bring an allegation to its attention. The Working Group must also act impartially and independently. Therefore, it treats all notifications made to it equally, accepts them as allegations, and invites the relevant Government to respond. Therefore, the obligation to interact constructively with the Working Group lies with the Government... The Government, in its late response, denies all allegations and asserts that Öztürk's arrest was carried out in accordance with all international human rights obligations undertaken by Turkey... The Government did not attempt to explain how Öztürk's arrest without a warrant was absolutely necessary, only asserting that Öztürk was behind the creation of the situation in question... The Working Group is not convinced by the Government's claim that the state of emergency created specific exigencies sufficient to justify such an arrest.”

While it was reported in the decision that for these reasons, the detention and arrest of Akın Öztürk were concluded to be “arbitrary,” the following were underlined:

“The Working Group considers that if it is accepted that people can be detained and arrested before trial without respecting the procedure established by law, the guarantees of the right to liberty and security would be meaningless... The limitation on access to the case file has not been sufficiently explained by the Government... Finally, the Working Group is seriously concerned that the Government, in its late response, has not refuted the allegations regarding the use of witness statements obtained under duress in Akın Öztürk's conviction. The admission of evidence obtained through torture or ill-treatment is fundamentally incompatible with the basic principles of a fair trial. Such a practice would not only violate legal and moral standards but would also undermine the credibility and reputation of the entire judicial process. Allowing such evidence in a criminal case would amount to a serious miscarriage of justice.”

'URGENT ACTION' PROCEDURE FOR AKIN ÖZTÜRK

In the conclusion section of the decision, it was noted that “the Working Group has taken note of the unrefuted allegations regarding Akın Öztürk's health condition and has initiated an 'urgent action' procedure due to the gravity of Öztürk's situation,” and the government was reminded of its “obligation to ensure that all persons deprived of their liberty are treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.”

While drawing attention to the significant increase in the number of cases referred to the Working Group regarding arbitrary detentions in Turkey in the last 7 years, it was emphasized that “widespread or systematic detentions or other severe deprivations of liberty that violate the fundamental rules of international law may constitute crimes against humanity.”

Ultimately, the UN Working Group, which ruled that Akın Öztürk was arrested in an “arbitrary and unreasonable” manner and was not given a fair trial, demanded that Öztürk be “released immediately, paid compensation, and that an investigation be opened into those responsible for these violations.”

Müyesser YILDIZ

February 12, 2025