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GENEVA / ZEID TURKEY
STORY: GENEVA / ZEID TURKEY
TRT: 02:46
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 10 MAY 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / RECENT
RECENT, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Aerial shot, Palais Wislon
10 MAY 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
“The picture that is emerging, although still sketchy, is extremely alarming. I strongly condemn violence and other unlawful acts committed by groups allegedly affiliated with the PKK , in Cizre and other areas, and I regret any loss of life as a result of terrorist acts wherever they have occurred. However, while Turkey has a duty to protect its population from acts of violence, it is essential that the authorities respect human rights at all times while undertaking security or counter-terrorism.”
RECENT, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
3. Aerial shot, Palais Wislon
10 MAY 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
“We have received reports of unarmed civilians – including women and children – being deliberately shot by snipers, or by gunfire from tanks and other military vehicles. There also appears to have been massive destruction of property and infrastructure – including buildings hit by mortar or shellfire, and damage inflicted on the contents of individual apartments and houses taken over by security forces. There are also allegations of arbitrary arrests, and of torture and other forms of ill-treatment, as well as reports that in some situations the authorities refused to allow ambulances and medical staff to reach the wounded. On top of all this, there has been huge displacement triggered by the curfews and by subsequent fighting, shelling, killings and arrests in many places in the south-east. In addition, there are very disturbing reports quoting witnesses and relatives in Cizre suggesting that more than 100 people were burned to death as they sheltered in three different basements that had been surrounded by security forces.”
RECENT, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
5. Wide shot, front entrance to Palais Wislon
10 MAY 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
“The Turkish Government has not responded positively to requests by my Office and other parts of the United Nations to visit the region to collect information first-hand.”
RECENT, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
7. Tilt up, front entrance to Palais Wislon
10 MAY 2016, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
“This black-out simply fuels suspicions about what has been going on. I therefore renew my call for access for UN staff and other impartial observers and investigators, including civil society organizations and journalists.”
RECENT, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
9. Close up UN Human Rights plaque
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, said today (10 May) that he had received a succession of alarming reports about violations allegedly committed by Turkish military and security forces in south-east Turkey over the past few months.
Zeid urged the Turkish authorities to give independent investigators, including UN staff, unimpeded access to the area to verify the veracity of such reports.
He said. “The picture that is emerging, although still sketchy, is extremely alarming.”
The High Commissioner “strongly” condemned violence allegedly committed by those affiliated with the PKK. However, he said, “while Turkey has a duty to protect its population from acts of violence, it is essential that the authorities respect human rights at all times while undertaking security or counter-terrorism operations.”
Zeid said he had received reports of unarmed civilians – including women and children – being deliberately shot by snipers, or by gunfire from tanks and other military vehicles.
He said “there also appears to have been massive, and seemingly highly disproportionate, destruction of property and key communal infrastructure – including buildings hit by mortar or shellfire, and damage inflicted on the contents of individual apartments and houses taken over by security forces,” as well as “allegations of arbitrary arrests, and of torture and other forms of ill-treatment” and “reports that in some situations ambulances and medical staff were prevented from reaching the wounded.”
In addition, he said “there are very disturbing reports quoting witnesses and relatives in Cizre suggesting that more than 100 people were burned to death as they sheltered in three different basements that had been surrounded by security forces.”
The High Commissioner said the Turkish Government has not responded positively to requests from his office to visit the region and collect information first-hand.
He said “this black-out simply fuels suspicions about what has been going on” and renewed his call for access for UN staff and other impartial observers and investigators.
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