CAT/C/21/D/101/1997
page 3
2.2. In 1985 the author was arrested together with his brother and kept in
detention without a trial in Pram Palace prison, Adiyaman, for a period
of 40 days, during which he was subjected to torture. He was beaten with
fists, truncheons and other objects on his back, lower legs, face and the
soles of his feet. He also received electric shocks.
2.3. After his release the author continued his political activities, of
which he claims the Turkish authorities were aware. Whenever there was a
clash between the PKK and Turkish police or military near the author's village
he was arrested, kept in detention, interrogated for a couple of hours and
then released. He was beaten and insulted in order to force him to cooperate
with the Turkish authorities and to reveal names of PKK sympathizers.
Following one of those clashes between the PKK and the security forces in
March 1990 in a neighbouring village, the author was informed that his name
had been revealed to the authorities. He then fled, together with his father,
his brother and other inhabitants of his village, to the mountains. From
there, he received help from the PKK to flee the country. He arrived in
Sweden via Romania, where he stayed for one and a half months.
2.4. The author arrived in Sweden on 7 July 1990 and immediately applied for
asylum. On 20 June 1991 the National Immigration Board rejected his
application. His appeal was subsequently rejected by the Aliens Appeal Board
on 1 December 1992. A so-called “new application” was turned down by the
Aliens Appeal Board on 23 November 1994, and two further “new applications”
were rejected on 29 April 1996 and 15 November 1996, respectively.
2.5. The author went into hiding and in December 1996, the immigration
authorities' decision to expel the author could no longer be enforced due to
the statute of limitation. A new asylum procedure was then initiated.
On 2 October 1997, the National Immigration Board rejected the author’s new
request for asylum. His appeal was subsequently rejected by the Aliens
Appeal Board on 27 November 1997. Another “new application” was turned down
on 19 December 1997.
The complaint
3.1. In view of his political activities, the author claims that there exist
substantial grounds to believe that he would be subjected to torture if he
were to be returned to Turkey. His forced return would therefore constitute a
violation by Sweden of article 3 of the Convention against Torture.
3.2. Counsel provides a medical report from the Center for Torture and Trauma
Survivors in Stockholm indicating that the author suffers from a
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He states that the report neither
confirms nor denies that the author has been subjected to physical torture.
However, the medical experts underline that the forms of torture which the
author claims he was subjected to do not necessarily leave physical marks.
3.3. In support of the author’s claim, reference is made to a letter from the
UNHCR Regional Office in Stockholm in which it is stated that it is essential
to find out whether Turkish asylum-seekers who are returned would be at risk