While the government of Turkey continues to crush the basic human rights and freedoms of its citizens, its officials are making statements completely detached from facts. On October 17, for instance, the head of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Çağatay Kılıç said that “racism and discrimination against religious identities in Europe have reached a peak.”

“A human being is an entity with thoughts, feelings, beliefs and social networks,” he added. “If a person is not allowed to live with these characteristics, this person’s fundamental rights and freedoms are taken away from them.”

It is actually Turkey that is silencing and even the destroying “thoughts, feelings, beliefs and social networks'” of those who disagree with the government, or who belong to a religion or ethnic group not considered sufficiently “Turkish.” Torture and abuse of citizens is also systematic and commonplace. Dr. Sebnem Korur Fincanci, the head of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT), was arrested for her statements about the country’s alleged use of chemical weapons. The foundation issues daily reports about the human rights violations in the country, such as torture and ill-treatment. The reports are based on media disclosures as well as testimonies of individuals who seek help from the organization after being exposed to torture, mistreatment, or other human rights violations.

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One community that is often targeted by the government is the Alevis, a historically oppressed religious minority. Turkey’s Alevi population is estimated to be in the tens of millions. Although Alevism is an authentic faith with its own traditions and philosophy, the Turkish government counts them as Muslim, in order to forcibly assimilate them and erase the Alevi culture.

Read more: Gatestone Institute