Police protects its own, says human rights czar
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Radikal
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Ocak 27, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Parliament’s human rights committee chairman, Zafer Üskül, says that after two months they still have no results from the investigation. Üskül says he has been frustrated by the excessive amount of bureaucracy he came across while trying to follow up on alleged reports of police abuse committed by staff at Istanbul’s Beyoğlu Police Station.
The president of Parliament’s Human Rights Inspection Committee and a Justice and Development Party, or AKP, deputy has run straight into the thick wall of bureaucracy by trying to obtain information about reports of alleged police violence.
Through the press, Zafer Üskül read about a family being beaten by police in late October 2008. Üskül saw the story of Mehmet Şah Araş and his family as they flagged a taxi in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu area to go to their home in Kurtuluş. His wife Aycan and sons S, 17, and A, 13, were accompanying him. According to Araş’s claim, there was a garbage truck in the Tarlabaşı neighborhood blocking the road, but when Araş asked the police for help, the officers manhandled him and his family. Later, Araş and his elder son were taken into a police van and beaten.
Araş and his son S both obtained a medical report granting them eight days of leave due to injury and applied to the Human Rights Foundation, or İHD, on Nov. 2, 2008. The daily Radikal published the story the following day, where Üskül read of the situation. Üskül started a process of official correspondence stretching from the Parliament’s Human Rights Inspection Committee to the Interior Ministry and from the Beyoğlu police station to the Istanbul governor’s office and only got clogged down in bureaucracy.
Kept waiting for a week
Üskül called Yusuf Yüksel, the police chief of Beyoğlu, the day the story was published. Yüksel told Üskül that he will call the Araş family the following day, but Üskül waited a week for Yüksel to return his call. Üskül called again Nov. 10 when but could not reach Yüksel. When Üskül finally did manage to talk to Yüksel on Nov. 12 the answer he received was: "We could not identify the suspected officers."
As a last resort, Üskül wrote down the incident with the title: "Subject: Yusuf Yüksel" and sent it to the Istanbul governor’s office, only to be told, "The investigation is ongoing." Üskül spoke to Radikal later, voicing his frustration with the situation: "There is something strange with this matter. I fail to understand why these people cannot be identified. This system is protecting its own."
Üskül did not bother to mask his anger in his address to the governor’s office and asked the following questions: "Isn’t it known which police team was on duty at the time and place the complainant family has indicated? Since the complainant has expressed that he and his son were forced into the police vehicle, beaten and taken from the scene, has there been an investigation into possible vehicles or a search for prints? Has an effective inspection been carried out up to this moment? If it has, what is it?"
The address ended with a reminder of law number 3686 related to the Human Rights Inspection Committee that reads: "The committee may demand information from any establishment and foundation," and a reminder of the part about "being informed immediately."
Üskül received a response one month later on Dec. 23. According to the response, Üskül’s apprehension and questions were passed to Yüksel and he has defended himself. Yüksel said he had listened to the complaints of the Araş family and informed Üskül about them. Also, he had returned Üskül’s call on Nov. 10 but no one had answered. Yüksel said he and Üskül were in contact a few times during the process and he had told him that the identification attempts had proven unfruitful. Yüksel said, following Üskül’s questions, the personnel on duty assigned to the mentioned vehicle were shown to the family and even more, other personnel who were driving the same type of vehicle were brought for face-to-face identification with the complainants and none produced any results.
Avoiding ’repetitiveness’
Yüksel also said the investigation being carried out by the Beyoğlu police station already ended to avoid "repetitive investigation" since the police department had assigned two chief inspectors to the case Dec. 12, which is the last date Üskül and Yüksel talked on the phone.
While awaiting news from Istanbul, Üskül wrote to the Interior Ministry on Dec. 19 demanding a copy of the chief inspector’s report. The ministry replied Dec. 29 saying, "The investigation has not been completed yet." Therefore, Üskül’s quest for information of possible human rights abuses starting on Oct. 3 ended in vain on Dec 29.
Üskül answered questions from the press on the matter and said he intervened in the matter via phone to hasten the process but the results were unsatisfactory. "If they would tell me on the phone that those who are responsible have been identified and action has been taken, then the goal would be reached. Since that did not happen it was necessary to write. So that was what we did," he said.
Üskül said that after two months they still have no results. When asked whether he was talking about the police department, he answered, "Yes, of course." Üskül was also asked whether or not Police Chief Yüksel was slowing down the process. "If the superiors do not follow the case effectively, I think their responsibility also has to be put under the spotlight," Üskül said. The Beyoğlu police station came into the limelight with claims of torture after the law was amended and police received more authority. Festus Okey, a Nigerian, died at the Beyoğlu police station when he was struck by a bullet allegedly fired by a police officer. Okey became a symbol of abuse by torture. Tuğrul Pek was the chief of police there at the time. Many civil society organizations have a special section for the Beyoğlu police station in their reports. The claims of torture seemed to decrease after Okey’s case but they are allegedly increasing again since Yüksel was appointed to the job.
Through the press, Zafer Üskül read about a family being beaten by police in late October 2008. Üskül saw the story of Mehmet Şah Araş and his family as they flagged a taxi in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu area to go to their home in Kurtuluş. His wife Aycan and sons S, 17, and A, 13, were accompanying him. According to Araş’s claim, there was a garbage truck in the Tarlabaşı neighborhood blocking the road, but when Araş asked the police for help, the officers manhandled him and his family. Later, Araş and his elder son were taken into a police van and beaten.
Araş and his son S both obtained a medical report granting them eight days of leave due to injury and applied to the Human Rights Foundation, or İHD, on Nov. 2, 2008. The daily Radikal published the story the following day, where Üskül read of the situation. Üskül started a process of official correspondence stretching from the Parliament’s Human Rights Inspection Committee to the Interior Ministry and from the Beyoğlu police station to the Istanbul governor’s office and only got clogged down in bureaucracy.
Kept waiting for a week
Üskül called Yusuf Yüksel, the police chief of Beyoğlu, the day the story was published. Yüksel told Üskül that he will call the Araş family the following day, but Üskül waited a week for Yüksel to return his call. Üskül called again Nov. 10 when but could not reach Yüksel. When Üskül finally did manage to talk to Yüksel on Nov. 12 the answer he received was: "We could not identify the suspected officers."
As a last resort, Üskül wrote down the incident with the title: "Subject: Yusuf Yüksel" and sent it to the Istanbul governor’s office, only to be told, "The investigation is ongoing." Üskül spoke to Radikal later, voicing his frustration with the situation: "There is something strange with this matter. I fail to understand why these people cannot be identified. This system is protecting its own."
Üskül did not bother to mask his anger in his address to the governor’s office and asked the following questions: "Isn’t it known which police team was on duty at the time and place the complainant family has indicated? Since the complainant has expressed that he and his son were forced into the police vehicle, beaten and taken from the scene, has there been an investigation into possible vehicles or a search for prints? Has an effective inspection been carried out up to this moment? If it has, what is it?"
The address ended with a reminder of law number 3686 related to the Human Rights Inspection Committee that reads: "The committee may demand information from any establishment and foundation," and a reminder of the part about "being informed immediately."
Üskül received a response one month later on Dec. 23. According to the response, Üskül’s apprehension and questions were passed to Yüksel and he has defended himself. Yüksel said he had listened to the complaints of the Araş family and informed Üskül about them. Also, he had returned Üskül’s call on Nov. 10 but no one had answered. Yüksel said he and Üskül were in contact a few times during the process and he had told him that the identification attempts had proven unfruitful. Yüksel said, following Üskül’s questions, the personnel on duty assigned to the mentioned vehicle were shown to the family and even more, other personnel who were driving the same type of vehicle were brought for face-to-face identification with the complainants and none produced any results.
Avoiding ’repetitiveness’
Yüksel also said the investigation being carried out by the Beyoğlu police station already ended to avoid "repetitive investigation" since the police department had assigned two chief inspectors to the case Dec. 12, which is the last date Üskül and Yüksel talked on the phone.
While awaiting news from Istanbul, Üskül wrote to the Interior Ministry on Dec. 19 demanding a copy of the chief inspector’s report. The ministry replied Dec. 29 saying, "The investigation has not been completed yet." Therefore, Üskül’s quest for information of possible human rights abuses starting on Oct. 3 ended in vain on Dec 29.
Üskül answered questions from the press on the matter and said he intervened in the matter via phone to hasten the process but the results were unsatisfactory. "If they would tell me on the phone that those who are responsible have been identified and action has been taken, then the goal would be reached. Since that did not happen it was necessary to write. So that was what we did," he said.
Üskül said that after two months they still have no results. When asked whether he was talking about the police department, he answered, "Yes, of course." Üskül was also asked whether or not Police Chief Yüksel was slowing down the process. "If the superiors do not follow the case effectively, I think their responsibility also has to be put under the spotlight," Üskül said. The Beyoğlu police station came into the limelight with claims of torture after the law was amended and police received more authority. Festus Okey, a Nigerian, died at the Beyoğlu police station when he was struck by a bullet allegedly fired by a police officer. Okey became a symbol of abuse by torture. Tuğrul Pek was the chief of police there at the time. Many civil society organizations have a special section for the Beyoğlu police station in their reports. The claims of torture seemed to decrease after Okey’s case but they are allegedly increasing again since Yüksel was appointed to the job.