Turkish teen gets 8 years for throwing stones
Share
Turkey’s much maligned human rights record looks set to continue, after a 15-year old Kurdish girl was jailed for attending a rally for the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The girl, known only as Berivan, was initially given a 13-and-a-half-year sentence, which was reduced to seven years and nine months on appeal.
She was convicted of throwing rocks, shouting slogans, attending illegal meetings and spreading propaganda, all of which constitute terrorist offences under Turkish law. During her trial she claimed she didn’t even know what “propaganda” meant.
Berivan claims she only stopped to look at the event while passing by on the way to her aunt’s house. She told the court that she only confessed to the crimes after being beaten in custody.
In an emotional letter to a Turkish paper, Berivan wrote, "I want to get out of here. I want to be with my family. I always cry here. I cannot get used to this.”
The European Court of Human Rights claims that Turkey accounted for 19% of all violations dealt with during 1959 and 2009, making them the most frequent violator of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Turkish legislation allows courts try children as adults in terror-related cases, with a maximum sentence of up to 50 years. Up to 2,622 minors are currently held in Turkish jails.
