Mustafa Aytac, 31, a mechanical engineer was imprisoned in 2022 due to his association with the Gulen Movement (GM). He was sentenced to over 7 years; because of helping those dismissed state employers by presidential decree (KHK) and organising or attending Gulen Movement’s religious gatherings. He is incarcerated in Afyonkarahisar Province Prison and was diagnosed with lymphoma around 6 months ago. On 24th July 2024, his health condition worsened, and he was hospitalised. He has been receiving chemotherapy. According to the latest information by Aytac’s family members on the 30th of August 2024; he has been in the hospital ever since and is not responding to chemotherapy.
While he was receiving medical treatment in the hospital, he was kept handcuffed at all times due to a ‘potential risk that he may escape’ regardless of his severely ill condition. In early August, Turkiye’s Council of Forensic Medicine (ATK; Adli Tip Kurumu) reviewed his condition as unfit to remain imprisoned and required immediate release. However, no action has been taken by the authorities to respond to his release or uncuff him during his medical care. The doctors mentioned the possibility of his death.
The Finnish Immigration Service recently released a statement about individuals associated with the Gulen Movement in Turkey; highlighting the experiences of those in Turkey and the exiled diaspora. The statement includes findings related to Aytac’s case; such as how those ‘KHK-list’ members are treated in the society. As the list is publicly available, and through the informal ways between individuals, those dismissed from their jobs are hugely stigmatised in society. They are not recruited by workplaces as that can lead to the employer’s alleged association with the Gulen Movement and may be used against them. Those individuals are labelled ‘dangerous’ by neighbours and eventually lead to ‘civil death’ via extreme exclusion of these individuals. In the case of Aytac, his brave act of solidarity with those negatively impacted in this situation was used against him. Also, having attended the Gulen Movement’s religious gatherings has been noticed as the most used criterion for the imprisonment of Turkey’s political opposition members. This may indicate the ruling party’s efforts to prevent gatherings of those who oppose the Justice and Development Party`s (AKP) strategies and limit discussions around it. This is a political motivation to homogenise the people’s ideologies. In addition, the city of Afyonkarahisar was mentioned by the Arrested Lawyers for ill-treatment as the common practice during police custody. Therefore, those acting on the government’s behalf as police officers and prison guards may contribute to the limited practice of political prisoners’ human rights and may play a role in not releasing Mustafa Aytac.
The current situation Mustafa Aytac has been facing, as well as common patterns observed by independent researchers, show the overcriminalization of Gulen Movement individuals and those who show solidarity with the movement. In addition, basic needs such as accessing medical healthcare with dignity and the right to freedom of individuals as their release is confirmed are refused by the Turkish authorities.
We, as RIGHTSDEFENDERS, demand the immediate release of Mustafa Aytac and justice for those over-criminalised for helping people based on human rights and empathy. The cases of ill-treatment in Afyonkarahisar need to be researched intensively by third-party organisations to ensure that political prisoners’ dignity as human beings is respected. As a result, those causing the postponement of his release and possibly ill-treatment in the prison that may have caused his cancer need to be taken to justice.
References
https://www.tr724.com/kanser-hastasi-mustafa-aytac-icin-infaz-erteleme-karari-cikti/
https://stockholmcf.org/ailing-inmate-with-cancer-kept-in-prison-despite-critical-condition/
https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:cdc8387c-0eef-4496-a333-d7d5fe396b02
