The International Association for Human Rights in Geneva (IAHRAG) thanks the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Committee) for its engagement with civil society and for providing this opportunity to be associated in the process of consideration of the 8^th periodic report of Turkey.

IAHRAG also thanks the Committee for the adoption of the comprehensive LOIs adopted on July 2021 (CEDAW/C/TUR/Q/8) as well as for its previous concluding observations adopted on July 2016 (CEDAW/C/TUR/CO/7). Our shadow report aims at highlighting some of the issues mentioned both in the list of issues and the previous concluding observations.

The period after the coup has been characterized by interference of the executive with the work of the judiciary and curtailment of parliamentary oversight over the executive branch of Government; arbitrary mass dismissals of civil servants and private sector employees; arbitrary closure of civil society organizations, including prominent human rights non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and media; arbitrary detention of people arrested under state of emergency measures; the use of torture and ill-treatment during pre-trial detention; restrictions of the rights to freedom of expression and of movement; arbitrary expropriation of private property; and methods of collective punishment targeting family members of individuals suspected of offences under the state of emergency.

All these measures affected women. In some cases, it even had disproportionate effects on women: the massive dismissal of female civil servants, teachers and academics put women in situation of social and economic vulnerability, unable to find other positions due to stigmatization.

These measures had a long-term impact on the situation of women’s rights. Hence, we kindly invite the Committee to raise concerns on this topic at the occasion of its upcoming dialogue with the Turkish delegation as well as express recommendations in its upcoming Cobs.

In addition, IAHRAG informed the Committee about the conditions of detention of women in Turkey and express concerns as to: (a) strip-searches and sexual/sexist violence in detention; and (b) pregnant women and women with health issues in detention. In its 2016 Cobs (para. 51), the Committee already expressed concerns over sexual violence on women in detention. We kindly invite the Committee to raise those concerns again at the occasion of the dialogue and to request answers from the delegation on the allegations that sexual/sexist violence especially occurs on women charged with terrorist accusations, particularly women from the Hizmet movement and Kurdish women, and in the aftermath of the 15 July 2016 Coup attempt.

Also, we mentioned the global and alarming shrinkage of spaces for civil society and restrictions on freedoms in Turkey that also affect women’s rights defenders. Women civil society organizations are targeted, and their members suffer judiciary harassment. IAHRAG particularly invites the Committee to raise those concerns over its dialogue with the delegation. In addition, and in view of the 2016 Cobs , IAHRAG invites the Committee to further address and link the deterioration of women’s rights in Turkey with the global deterioration of the rule of law principles, notably the independence of the judiciary and the respect for basic freedoms.