Freedom House: Turkey among world’s most repressive countries

ANKARA — International human rights watchdog Freedom House indicated that Turkey is one of the most repressive countries in the world in its most recent report on international repression.

Turkey witnessed the worst arrest campaign in its history against political opponents of the government, especially those groups and individuals opposed to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

“Incidents of transnational repression that took place in Turkey accounted for a quarter of the total recorded by Freedom House last year,” the report said.

The report clarified that since the 2016 coup attempt, the Turkish government has pursued those it considers enemies — among them politicians, journalists, and educators — repeatedly pressuring foreign governments to turn over political refugees who have managed to flee the country.

The report indicated that Turkey witnessed the largest number of arrests of opponents of the regime’s policies under false pretexts, including members and supporters of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (Halkların Demokratik Partisi, HDP).

Reporters Without Borders ranks Turkey 149 out of 180 countries in its 2022 World Press Freedom Index, pointing to the increasing authoritarianism and repression against anyone who opposes the Turkish government.