Recently, there have been allegations in the written and visual media that 3 women of Syrian nationality were taken off the bus with their children after an argument broke out for an unknown reason on a municipal bus in İzmir's Buca district. These and similar events, which are manifestations of racial discrimination and xenophobia, threaten the principle of pluralism, which is the fundamental value of democratic societies.
Racial discrimination is described in Article 1 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 21/12/1965 and ratified by our country on 3/4/2002, as “any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.” and punished.
In Article 5 of the Convention, it is clearly stated that people have the right to freedom of movement within the borders of the party state and have the right to benefit from the means of transportation in this country without being exposed to any racial discrimination. The prohibition of discrimination based on race and ethnic origin, which is also regulated by Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, requires that transportation services, which should be evaluated within public services, be open to everyone, without any discrimination between members of the society. In addition, this issue is stated once again in Article 23 of the Constitution of the Republic of Türkiye, with the phrase “Everyone has the freedom of residence and movement”.
In the 5th and 25th articles of Law on the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Türkiye, with No. 6701 dated 20/4/2016, it is stipulated that discrimination cannot be made against people who benefit from or have applied to benefit from transportation and similar services, administrative fine will be imposed to the practices to the contrary. Moreover, as stated in the European Commission's General Policy Recommendation No. 2 to combat racism and intolerance, the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Türkiye, as an equality institution, plays a vital role in establishing equality in social life and combating discrimination and intolerance.
In this context, verbal, written, visual and audio expressions that encourage hatred, discrimination or acts of violence against racial or ethnic groups, communities or their members, as well as virtual practices such as deprivation of public services, may lead to criminal liability and may lead to violations that require administrative sanctions in the context of Law No. 6701.
Our Institution, whose main mission is to guarantee the right of people to be treated equally based on human dignity and to prevent discrimination in benefiting from legally recognized rights and freedoms, noting that all areas where basic public services are provided, including means of transportation, should be safe spaces against racism and discrimination, closely follows the allegations reflected in the written and visual media.
Respectfully announced to the public.