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Summary: General overview of Turkey's national legal provisions on children's rights, including guidance on how to conduct further research.
National laws on children's rights Status of CRC in national law After ratification, the CRC became an integral and indisputable part of domestic law (Section 90 of the Constitution provides that “international agreements duly put into effect bear the force of law”), taking priority over domestic laws in matters of fundamental rights and freedoms. It is notable that Turkey has reserved the right to interpret and apply the provisions of Articles 17, 29 and 30 of the Convention - all of which refer to language rights and/or cultural identity - according to the letter and spirit of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey and those of the Treaty of Lausanne of 24 July 1923. Constitution: The Constitution of the Republic of Turkey includes a number of provisions that directly address the rights of children or the rights of parents in relation to children: Art. 41 states that it is the State's duty to “take the necessary measures and establish the necessary organisation to ensure the peace and welfare of the family, especially where the protection of the mother and children is involved, and recognizing the need for education in the practical application”. The provision also states that every child has the right to adequate protection and care, and the right to have and maintain a personal and direct contact with his/her parents unless this is explicitly contrary to his/her best interests. Art. 50 sets out special protections for minors with regard to working conditions; Art. 58 ensures that the “[S]tate shall take measures to ensure the training and development of [ ] youth” and that “the state shall take necessary measures to protect [ ] youth from addiction to alcohol, drug addiction, crime, gambling, and similar vices, and ignorance”; Art. 61 defines children as persons requiring special protection in the field of social security; Art. 62 obliges the State to take “the necessary measures to ensure family unity, the education of [ ] children, the cultural needs, and the social security of Turkish nationals working abroad, and to take the necessary measures to safeguard their ties with the home country and to help them on their return home”; Art. 141 is important for youth justice since it establishes that “special provisions shall be provided in the law with respect to the trial of minors”. Legislation: There are specific laws on the Protection of the Family (No. 4320 14 Jan. 1998) and on Child Protection (No. 5395, 3 July 2005). The Child Protection Law covers numerous children's rights issues, and explicitly incorporates many of the principles of the CRC. It also details and improves juvenile justice procedures, sets out procedures for the adoption and implementation of counselling, health, education and shelter orders for children in need of protection, and determines the roles and duties of the related government departments, social workers and probation officers. Other legislation relevant to children's rights includes, but is by no means limited to: Civil Code (No. 4721, 22 Nov. 2001) Labour Act (No. 4857, 22 May 2003) Penal Code (No. 5237, 1 June 2005) Law on Criminal Procedure (No. 5271, 1 June 2005) Law on protection of children from obscenity (No. 1117, 3 July 2005) Law on Agency for Social Services and Child Protection (No. 2828, 20 Nov. 1999) Regulation on Determining, Evaluating and Investigating Children in Need of Protection, and on the Adoption and Rescinding of Decisions to Put under Protection (No. 28 Nov. 1983) Regulation on the principles and procedures for children and youth work (No. 25425, 6 Apr. 2004) Legal Research Case law Case Law Research Compliance with the CRC In depth analysis: However, The Committee deeply regretted the restrictive nature of the State party’s reservations to the Convention and noted that there are numerous failings of domestic legislation with regard to the provisions and principles of the Convention. In particular, the Committee highlighted issues with juvenile justice (pre-trial detention, low minimum age of criminal responsibility, limited juvenile court jursidction, overuse of detention), restricted civil rights (article 13 of the Turkish Civil Code states that children “shall not be entitled to exercise civil rights”) and child labour (lack of a minimum age for work; ban on children joining associations). In addition, ongoing discrimination was identified as a failing with regards to Turkey's project to harmonise the Convention with national law, administrative and judicial decisions. The principle of non-discrimination was not fully implemented for all children, in particular children of Kurdish origin, children with disabilities, children born out of wedlock, girls, refugee and asylum-seeking children, children who are internally displaced, and children living in the south-eastern region and in rural areas, especially with regard to their access to adequate health and educational facilities. The Committee also discussed the importance of birth registration; the relative impunity for those who torture children or subject them to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the “hidden” issues of domestic violence and abuse; and violations of children's right to privacy including virginity tests. Current legal reform projects
The Turkish Grand National Assembly maintains a website in Turkish and English (http://www.tbmm.gov.tr/iletisim.htm), but the Turkish Parliament in general does not offer English summaries or translations of Turkish legislation. Some translations are made available through the ILO's NATLEX database (http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/natlex_browse.country?p_lang=en&p_country=TUR), and the Constitution can be downloaded form the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Turkey website (http://www.anayasa.gov.tr/index.php?l=template&id=210&lang=1&c=1). A comprehensive legal research guide is available from the New York University GlobaLex Project (http://www.nyulawglobal.org/Globalex/Turkey1.htm), and both the U.S. Library of Congress (http://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide/nations/turkey.php) and the World Legal Information Institute (http://www.worldlii.org/tr/) offer portals with links to many legal research and government websites.
CRC Jurisprudence
In 2008, the European Court of Human Rights heard the case Salduz v Turkey concerning children's right to legal assistance in the juvenile justice system (http://www.crin.org/Law/instrument.asp?InstID=1487).
The Constitutional Court offers full versions of its decisions in Turkish and summaries in English (http://www.anayasa.gov.tr/index.php?l=template&id=212&lang=1&c=1) and German. The Republic of Turkey Supreme Court maintains a website in English and Turkish, although case law resources are available only in Turkish (http://www.yargitay.gov.tr/).
The Committee on the Rights of the Child noted that several pieces of legislation, including the Civil Law, Criminal Code, and Code of Criminal Procedure, were under review to determine compatibility with the CRC. Nevertheless, the Committee did express “concern that relevant parts of the legislation, such as the 'Anti-terror Law' of 1991 and some provisions on juvenile courts, are still not in full conformity with the provisions and principles of the Convention.”
The Committee commended Turkey's ongoing process of ensuring that legislation is compatible with the Convention and establishing institutions to protect children's rights. There were also improvements to compulsory education and certain aspects of early childhood development and child labour.
Please contact CRIN if you are aware of any current legal reform projects.