“If we didn’t give money then they beat us. They used our money to send us back to Afghanistan.” – Afghan asylum-seeker.

People arriving at Turkey’s borders in search of asylum are putting their lives at risk every day because the Turkish authorities fail to provide them with international protection, Amnesty International said in a report published today (22 April).

Turkey is the only state and signatory to the UN Refugee Convention which, in effect, does not recognise nationals of countries outside the Council of Europe as refugees. As a result, an increasing number of people in need of protection are denied it.

The report, “Stranded: Refugees in Turkey denied protection”, reveals how the Turkish authorities persist in forcibly returning people to countries where they are at risk of serious human rights abuses.

In April 2008, Amnesty International was informed about an Iraqi family which was under arrest in southern Turkey after fleeing Baghdad. Police officers denied them the opportunity to apply for asylum despite a request being made by the UNHCR on their behalf and even refused to admit that the family was in detention. The family was forcibly returned to Iraq despite fears for their lives.

Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s expert on Turkey, said:

“The risks people trying to reach Turkey are prepared to take show their desperation. However, the country maintains double standards and refuses to recognise them as refugees.

“The Turkish authorities violate the rights of asylum-seekers on a regular basis from the moment they attempt to enter the country. The violations continue while their asylum claims are underway and after they are granted refugee status.”

Asylum-seekers are often detained for extended periods in poor conditions and with insufficient food and without a clear justification for the detention, says the Amnesty report. They may be expelled without any adequate legal procedure being followed, returning them to countries where their lives may be at risk.

In September 2008, 24 Uzbek refugees, 15 of them Children's rights, were forced into Iranian territory by Turkish security officials. During the deportation, members of the group were allegedly beaten and Women's rights's rightss rights's rights's rights's rights and girls threatened with rape. In Iran, the group were held hostage by an unnamed group which threatened to kill them. They were released after paying a ransom of $5,000 and returned to Turkey irregularly. In October, the group was once again deported to Iran.

In April 2008, four people drowned after a group of 18 people were forced to swim across the River Tigris dividing Turkey and Iraq after Iraqi authorities refused to accept them back into their territory.

Asylum-seekers in Turkey also face severe restrictions in gaining access to health care, adequate housing and work, despite Turkey’s obligations under international law.

Amnesty International is calling on the Turkish authorities to legislate for and implement a fair domestic asylum procedure. This should ensure that all people in need of international protection are recognised and provided with such protection, and should fully respect the rights of asylum-seekers and refugees.

In Turkey, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, undertakes the task of determining refugee status and facilitates the resettlement of some of those recognised as refugees in third countries. While in 2006, according to official data, the UNHCR received 4,550 new asylum applications from non-European countries, the number rose to 12,980 in 2008. Most of them arrived from Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia. In the meantime, many thousands more may be remaining in Turkey irregularly – there are no reliable figures available.

ENDS

For more media information contact the Amnesty International UK press office:
Steve Ballinger, 020 7033 1548
Out of office hours: 07721 398984