,,ii  #aagth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,s4 #bdjc  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,july #bj1     
#bjba ,mr4 ,markey 7for himself1 ,mr4   
,wyden1 and ,mr4 ,merkley7 introduced   
the following bill2 which was read twice
 and referred to the ,committee on      
,foreign ,relations  ,a ,,bill  ,to     
assist those subject to politically     
motivated charges in ,turkey1 and for   
other purposes4  #a4 ,short title2 table
 of contents  7a7 ,short title ,this    
,act may be cited as the ,turkey ,human 
,rights ,promotion ,act of #bjba4  7b7  
,table of contents ,the table of        
contents for this ,act is as follows3   
,sec4 #a4 ,short title2 table of        
contents4 ,sec4 #b4 ,findings4 ,sec4 #c4
 ,definitions4 ,sec4 #d4 ,statement of  
policy4 ,sec4 #e4 ,sense of ,congress on
 press freedom4 ,sec4 #f4 ,sense of     
,congress on internet freedom4 ,sec4 #g4
 ,sense of ,congress on protecting      
lawyers and promoting fair trials4 ,sec4
 #h4 ,sense of ,congress on             

accountability for human rights         
violations4 ,sec4 #i4 ,political        
prisoners assistance4  #b4 ,findings    
,congress makes the following findings3 
7#a7 ,the ,united ,states values its    
longstanding alliance with the ,republic
 of ,turkey and its friendship with the 
people of ,turkey1 and seeks to promote 
their democratic aspirations4  7#b7     
,actions taken by the ,government of    
,turkey in the aftermath of the         
attempted coup of ,july #bjaf have      
significantly expanded the government's 
crackdown on freedoms of expression1    
peaceful assembly1 and association4     
,freedom ,house assessed ,turkey to be  
not free in its ,freedom in the ,world  
#bjba report4  7#c7 ,since ,july #bjaf1 
,turkish authorities have detained tens 
of thousands of people they accused of  
aiding the coup attempt or supporting   
terrorism1 sweeping up journalists1     
opposition politicians1 dissidents1 and 
others4 ,the end of the state of        
emergency in #bjah has not led to an    

improvement in fundamental freedoms in  
,turkey as the ,government of ,turkey   
has codified several provisions from the
 state of emergency into law4  7#d7 ,the
 ,government of ,turkey has used the    
attempted coup as justification for a   
broader crackdown4  7#e7 ,the #bjbj     
,country ,reports on ,human ,rights     
,practices3 ,turkey states1 ,under broad
 antiterror legislation passed in #bjah 
the government continued to restrict    
fundamental freedoms and compromised the
 rule of law4 ,since the #bjaf coup     
attempt1 authorities have dismissed or  
suspended more than #fj1jjj police and  
military personnel and approximately    
#abe1jjj civil servants1 dismissed      
one-third of the judiciary1 arrested or 
imprisoned more than #ij1jjj citizens1  
and closed more than #a1ejj             
nongovernmental organizations on        
terrorism-related grounds1 primarily for
 alleged ties to the movement of cleric 
,fethullah ,gulen1 whom the government  
accused of masterminding the coup       

attempt and designated as the leader of 
the ,fethullah ,terrorist               
,organization44  7#f7 ,a #bjbj ,reuters 
investigative press report revealed that
 the ,government of ,turkey terminated  
#d1jjj judges and prosecutors since     
#bjaf4 ,a #bjbj ,human ,rights ,watch   
report highlighted the continued        
arbitrary detention of lawyers1 which   
runs contrary to ,turkey's obligations  
under the ,international ,covenant on   
,civil and ,political ,rights1 the      
,convention for the ,protection of      
,human ,rights and ,fundamental         
,freedoms 7commonly known as the        
,european ,convention on ,human         
,rights71 and other human rights        
obligations4  7#g7 ,turkey is the       
world's second worst jailer of          
journalists1 according to the ,committee
 to ,protect ,journalists4  7#h7        
,president ,recep ,tayyip ,erdoan began 
a crackdown on journalism even before   
the #bjaf coup attempt1 which he then   
intensified4 ,the ,committee to ,protect

 ,journalists estimated that ,turkey was
 holding at least #cg journalists in    
jail at the end of #bjbj4 ,according to 
a ,september #ah1 #bjai joint statement 
by civil society organizations1 at least
 #ahj media outlets have been forcibly  
closed since the coup attempt of which  
,kurdish-language and ,kurdish-focused  
media outlets are especially vulnerable4
  7#i7 ,the ,government of ,turkey has  
also targeted writers and academics4 ,of
 roughly #b1jjj academics who signed a  
,january #bjaf petition calling for a   
restart to peace negotiations between   
the government and the armed ,kurdistan 
,workers' ,party1 more than #gjj        
scholars were criminally charged with   
supporting propaganda for a terrorist   
organization4  7#aj7 ,the ,government of
 ,turkey continues its unjust1 #c-year  
detention of civil society leader ,osman
 ,kavala4 ,in #bjag1 ,turkish           
authorities charged ,kavala and #ae     
others with attempting to overthrow the 
government or to prevent it from        

performing its duties based on          
ill-founded accusations regarding the   
group's role in the #bjac protests4 ,in 
,december #bjai1 the ,european ,court of
 ,human ,rights 7,,echr7 ruled that     
,kavala's detention took place in the   
absence of sufficient evidence that he  
had committed an offense1 in violation  
of his right to liberty and security    
under the ,european ,convention on      
,human ,rights4 ,turkey responded by    
acquitting ,kavala1 but immediately     
rearrested him under new charges related
 to the #bjaf coup attempt1 purported   
espionage1 and continues to ignore the  
binding ,,echr ruling4  7#aa7 ,in #bjag1
 ,turkish police arrested ,amnesty      
,international ,turkey founding member  
,taner ,kili and its director1 ,idil    
,eser1 charging them as supporters of   
terrorism4 ,in ,july #bjbj1 a ,turkish  
court unjustly sentenced ,kili to over  
#f years in prison and ,eser to more    
than #b years in prison4  7#ab7 ,the    
,government of ,turkey continues its    

unjust detention of ,selhattin ,demirta1
 a ,kurdish politician detained with    
other members of the ,people's          
,democratic ,party in #bjaf4 ,demirta   
was a member of parliament at the time  
of his arrest for allegedly carrying out
 terrorist propaganda by speaking out in
 support of peace negotiations with the 
,kurdistan ,workers' ,party4 ,the       
,european ,court of ,human ,rights ruled
 in ,november #bjah that his detention  
had pursued the predominant ulterior    
purpose of stifling pluralism and       
limiting freedom of political debate1   
which was at the very core of the       
concept of a democratic society4 ,in    
,december #bjbj1 the ,,echr ruled that  
,turkey must immediately release        
,demirta from prison1 which ,turkey     
continues to ignore4  7#ac7 ,the        
,government of ,turkey has targeted     
lawyers1 with particular focus on       
criminal defense lawyers1 prosecuting   
them for discharging their professional 
duties and associating them1 without    

evidence1 with the alleged crimes of    
their clients4 ,fair trial rights and   
protections for lawyers have been       
restricted just as they are most        
critically needed given mass detentions 
and the wider crackdown on dissent4     
,police have also intimidated lawyers   
and obstructed their work4  7#ad7 ,the  
,government of ,turkey heavily restricts
 and censors the internet4 ,in #bjai1   
the government blocked more than        
#djh1jjj websites1 #dj1jjj tweets1      
#aj1jjj ,you,tube videos1 and #f1bjj    
,facebook shares1 and blocked ,wikipedia
 between #bjag and #bjbj4 ,in early     
#bjba1 the government enacted a new     
social media law1 which threatens social
 media companies that do not obey       
requests to remove content4 ,twitter1   
and its live video-streaming services1  
are currently facing pressure in the    
form of advertising bans by the         
,government of ,turkey as a result of   
their unwillingness to appoint local    
representatives to handle government    

removal requests4  7#ae7 ,turkey ranks  
among the countries with the highest    
number of content removal requests sent 
to ,twitter and ,facebook1 according to 
the companies' transparency reports4    
7#af7 ,the ,government of ,turkey has   
demonstrated a disregard for fundamental
 freedoms beyond ,turkey's borders1     
including in the ,united ,states4 ,in   
#bjaf1 members of ,president ,erdoan's  
security detail engaged in violence     
against journalists reporting on an     
event at the ,brookings ,institution4   
,during ,president ,erdoan's ,may #bjag 
visit to ,washington1 ,,dc1 individuals 
from the ,turkish ,embassy grounds      
pushed past ,district of ,columbia      
police officers to brutally attack      
individuals demonstrating peacefully in 
opposition to policies of the           
,government of ,turkey4  7#ag7 ,the     
,government of ,turkey has abused       
international institutions to target    
critics1 triggering a flood of ,interpol
 red notice requests to detain critics  

abroad1 according to ,freedom ,house4   
,targets include ,united ,states        
permanent resident ,enes ,kanter1 a     
professional basketball player1 human   
rights activist1 and vocal critic of    
,president ,erdoan4  7#ah7 ,since #bjad1
 the ,government of ,turkey has pursued 
opponents and critics in more than #cj  
countries1 securing the renditions of at
 least #eh people without due process in
 what ,freedom ,house has characterized 
as a campaign of transnational          
repression1 unrivaled by any other      
country4 ,in a ,march #bjba report1 the 
,office of the ,high ,commissioner for  
,human ,rights stated that the increase 
cases in arbitrary detention may        
constitute crimes against humanity4     
7#ai7 ,the ,government of ,turkey       
threatens to escalate its targeting of  
critics internationally1 consistent with
 an overly broad domestic               
counterterrorism campaign4 ,on ,october 
#cj1 #bjai1 ,president ,erdoan stated1  
,some countries eliminate terrorists    

whom they consider as a threat to their 
national security1 wherever they are4   
,therefore1 this means those countries  
accept ,turkey has the same right4 ,this
 includes the terrorists they shake     
hands with and praise44 ,he added that  
he hoped to deliver good news on the    
matter soon4  #c4 ,definitions ,in this 
,act3 7#a7 ,political prisoner ,the term
 political prisoner means a person who  
has been deprived of his or her personal
 liberty if--  7,a7 the detention has   
been imposed in violation of one of the 
fundamental guarantees set out in the   
,european ,convention on ,human ,rights1
 particularly-- 7i7 freedom of thought1 
conscience1 and religion2  7ii7 freedom 
of expression and information2 and      
7iii7 freedom of assembly and           
association2  7,b7 the detention has    
been imposed for purely political       
reasons without connection to any       
offense2  7,c7 for political motives1   
the length of the detention or its      
conditions are clearly out of proportion

 to the offense of which the person has 
been found guilty or is suspected2  7,d7
 for political motives1 he or she is    
detained in a discriminatory manner as  
compared to other persons2 or  7,e7 the 
detention is the result of proceedings  
which were clearly unfair and appear to 
be connected with political motives of  
the authorities4  7#b7 ,prisoner of     
conscience ,the term prisoner of        
conscience means any person who-- 7,a7  
is imprisoned or otherwise physically   
restricted solely for the peaceful      
exercise of his or her human rights2 and
  7,b7 has not used violence or         
advocated violence or hatred4  #d4      
,statement of policy ,it is the policy  
of the ,united ,states--  7#a7 to       
support democracy1 peace1 and prosperity
 in ,turkey2  7#b7 to oppose the abuse  
of counterterrorism authorities1        
including targeting journalists1        
political opponents1 dissidents1        
minorities 7including ,kurds71 and      
others engaged in exercising their right

 to freedoms of expression1 peaceful    
assembly1 or association2  7#c7 to      
consider those unfairly detained or     
imprisoned under counterterrorism       
authorities on politically motivated    
grounds to be prisoners of conscience or
 political prisoners1 as appropriate1   
unless there is probative evidence of   
specific criminal misconduct presented  
in proceedings that comply with         
international fair trial standards2     
7#d7 to use all diplomatic tools to     
advocate that all prisoners of          
conscience and political prisoners in   
,turkey should be released2  7#e7 to    
support and pressure the ,government of 
,turkey in the repeal or amendment of-- 
7,a7 all anti-terrorism laws and        
regulations that allow the government to
 unjustly target journalists1 political 
opponents1 dissidents1 and minorities2  
7,b7 all laws and regulations that      
violate the right to freedoms of        
expression1 peaceful assembly1 or       
association in a manner not permitted by

 international legal standards1         
including laws and regulations that seek
 to punish those who insult political   
figures or denigrate the ,turkish nation
 or state institutions2 and  7,c7 all   
laws and regulations that violate the   
right to a fair trial2 and  7#f7 to     
oppose the export to ,turkey by any     
country of surveillance technologies1   
including software1 that could be used  
to monitor the activities of            
journalists1 political opponents1       
dissidents1 or minorities4  #e4 ,sense  
of ,congress on press freedom ,it is the
 sense of ,congress that--  7#a7 the    
,government of ,turkey must take steps  
to significantly improve the dire       
climate for journalists and those       
supporting the journalism profession1   
including-- 7,a7 ending the enforcement 
of draconian laws and regulations that  
restrict freedom of expression2 and     
7,b7 releasing all journalists and media
 workers who have been imprisoned for   
fulfilling their professional           

responsibilities2  7#b7 the ,department 
of ,state should provide assistance and 
warnings of impending politically       
motivated detention or harm to          
journalists and media workers in danger 
in ,turkey1 regardless of citizenship   
status1 including journalists working   
for ,kurdish media organizations2  7#c7 
,united ,states ,government officials   
should prioritize demands to release    
unfairly detained journalists and media 
workers in their communications with    
,turkish officials2 and  7#d7 press     
freedom and the freedom of expression   
are fundamental human rights and should 
be upheld and protected in ,turkey and  
everywhere4  #f4 ,sense of ,congress on 
internet freedom ,it is the sense of    
,congress that-- 7#a7 the ,government of
 ,turkey must cease its ongoing         
crackdown on free expression on the     
internet1 including by repealing or     
amending laws that allow the government 
to block a website or remove content    
from the website if there is sufficient 

suspicion that the site is insulting    
political figures2  7#b7 the ,department
 of ,state should support and pressure  
the ,government of ,turkey-- 7,a7 to    
halt its frequent requests that social  
media companies block accounts and      
content of journalists and media        
outlets2 and  7,b7 to ensure that the   
,radio and ,television ,supreme ,council
 does not arbitrarily restrict online   
streaming services through a costly and 
opaque licensing regime2 and  7#c7      
escalating controls regulating internet 
use are an attempt by the ,government of
 ,turkey to silence one of the last     
platforms for independent journalism in 
the country4  #g4 ,sense of ,congress on
 protecting lawyers and promoting fair  
trials ,it is the sense of ,congress    
that-- 7#a7 the ,government of ,turkey  
must--  7,a7 halt its indiscriminate    
detention and prosecution of lawyers1   
judges1 prosecutors1 and court          
officials1 and its targeting of lawyers'
 associations2  7,b7 repeal laws        

restricting the right of lawyers to     
discharge their professional duties1 the
 rights of suspects to legal counsel1   
and the right of lawyer-client          
privileged communication2  7,c7 ensure  
that lawyers can visit detainees in     
police custody1 and remind police and   
prosecutors of the protected role of    
lawyers under ,article #ad of the       
,international ,covenant on ,civil and  
,political ,rights1 ,articles #e and #f 
of the ,european ,convention on ,human  
,rights1 and the ,united ,nations ,basic
 ,principles on the ,role of ,lawyers2  
and  7,d7 end the practice of           
prosecuting lawyers based on whom they  
have represented as clients2  7#b7 the  
,department of ,state should pressure   
the ,government of ,turkey-- 7,a7 to    
abolish extended pretrial detention1    
consistent with ,turkey's ,judicial     
,reform ,strategy2  7,b7 to reverse the 
,april #bjag amendment to ,article #aei 
of the ,constitution1 which allows for  
political control over the nomination   

procedures to the ,council of ,judges   
and ,prosecutors2 and  7,c7 to ensure   
the independence of judges and of the   
judiciary system1 with particular focus 
on the ,ministry of ,justice2 and  7#c7 
the independence of any country's       
judicial system suffers when lawyers--  
7,a7 are subject to intimidation and    
harassment in their work2 and  7,b7 are 
identified with the causes of their     
clients4  #h4 ,sense of ,congress on    
accountability for human rights         
violations ,it is the sense of ,congress
 that if the ,government of ,turkey does
 not promptly take effective steps to   
address the human rights violations     
described in this ,act--  7#a7 the      
,president of the ,united ,states should
 impose sanctions pursuant to the       
,global ,magnitsky ,human ,rights       
,accountability ,act 7subtitle ,f of    
title ,,xii of ,public ,law #aad-cbh2   
#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #bfef note7 with respect  
to officials of the ,government of      
,turkey found responsible for-- 7,a7 the

 detention of prisoners of conscience   
and political prisoners2  7,b7 the      
politically motivated detention of      
journalists2  7,c7 restricting of       
freedom of free expression through      
social media2 and  7,d7 other gross     
violations of internationally recognized
 human rights2  7#b7 the ,president     
should confirm that ,united ,states     
security assistance provided to the     
,government of ,turkey is fully         
consistent with the conditions mandated 
in section #cf of the ,arms ,export     
,control ,act 77#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #bggf77   
and the human rights provisions         
contained in section #fbj,m of the      
,foreign ,assistance ,act of #aifa1 7#bb
 ,u4,s4,c4 #bcgh;d72  7#c7 the          
,secretary of the ,treasury should      
instruct the ,united ,states executive  
director of each international financial
 institution to oppose any loan1 grant1 
policy1 or strategy determined to be    
directly enabling the ,government of    
,turkey to violate the human rights of  

its citizens2 and  7#d7 the ,secretary  
of ,state should impose visa            
restrictions under the announced        
,khashoggi ,ban1 pursuant to section    
#bab7;a77#c77;,c7 of the ,immigration   
and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4     
#aahb7;a77#c77;,c77 on--  7,a7          
individuals who1 acting on behalf of the
 government1 are believed to have been  
directly engaged in serious1            
extraterritorial counter-dissident      
activities1 including those who-- 7i7   
suppress1 harass1 surveil1 threaten1 or 
harm journalists1 activists1 or other   
persons perceived to be dissidents for  
their work2 or  7ii7 engage in such     
activities with respect to the families 
or other close associates of such       
persons2 and  7,b7 family members of    
individuals described in subparagraph   
7,a71 as appropriate4  #i4 ,political   
prisoners assistance ,the ,secretary of 
,state shall provide assistance to civil
 society organizations in ,turkey that  
work to secure the release of prisoners 

of conscience and political prisoners in
 ,turkey1 and to current and former     
prisoners of conscience and political   
prisoners in ,turkey1 including-- 7#a7  
support for the documentation of human  
rights violations with respect to       
prisoners of conscience and politically 
motivated prisoners2  7#b7 support for  
advocacy in ,turkey to raise awareness  
of issues relating to prisoners of      
conscience and political prisoners2     
7#c7 support for efforts to repeal or   
amend laws or regulations that are used 
to imprison individuals as prisoners of 
conscience or political prisoners2  7#d7
 support1 including travel costs1 and   
legal fees1 for families of prisoners of
 conscience and political prisoners2    
7#e7 support for health1 including      
mental health1 and post-incarceration   
assistance in gaining access to         
education and employment opportunities  
or other forms of reparation to enable  
former prisoners of conscience and      
political prisoners to resume a normal  

life2 and  7#f7 the delegation of       
specific ,united ,states mission staff  
who will observe trials in politically  
motivated cases1 including in ,southeast
 ,turkey4