Human Rights Foundation of Turkey


The Human Rights Foundation of Turkey is headquartered in Ankara. The organization is committed to treating torture survivors and documenting human rights violations in daily bulletins, monthly and annual special reports in Turkish and English languages.
WWW tihv.org.tr𝕏 insanhaklariFB TIHV.HRFT

History and awards

The HRFT was established in 1990 on initiative of the Human Rights Association. Besides the HRA 32 individuals became the founders of the HRFT. Offices for the treatment of torture survivors have been set up in Ankara, Istanbul, İzmir, Adana and Diyarbakir. The HRFT does not accept money from institutions that contribute to human rights violations. The work of the HRFT is supported by a large number of volunteers and donations from individuals. Among the various national and international institutions that support the HRFT are: the UN, the Council of Europe, the Red Cross and Amnesty International.

Treatment of Torture Victims

The treatment of torture survivors in the five centers is free of charge. By the end of the year 2006 the number of treated torture survivors had reached 10,786. Statistics are presented in annual reports. Currently the reports since 1999 are available online, but so far only in Turkish.

Documentation Center

The Documentation Center is in Ankara. Human rights violations are documented in daily bulletins, monthly, annual and special reports. The reports are published in Turkish and English. Since March 2007 the daily reports can be assessed on the homepage of the HRFT.

International initiatives and awards

The foundation, a member organization of the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims, took the initiative to develop a uniform guideline in March 1996, following an international symposium on "Medicine and Human Rights" organized by the Turkish Medical Association in Adana. Seventy-five doctors, psychotherapists, lawyers, and human rights activists, representing forty organizations from fifteen different countries, worked on the document, known as the Istanbul Protocol. In addition to a number of national awards, the TIHV has also received several international awards for its work, with the European Human Rights Prize in 1998 being one of the most notable awards.

Publications

  • Annual Reports 1990–2006
  • Annual Reports 1990–1996
  • Annual Reports 1997–2003, 2005
  • Annual Reports of the Treatment Centers
  • Annual Reports of the Treatment Centers

Special reports (books)