After the bombing in Istanbul on November 13, woman human rights defender and lawyer Jiyan Tosun is being falsely accused of carrying out this attack. The woman human rights defender and her family are receiving death threats and are fearing for their security. With the spread of this fake news, they are unable to stay in their homes for fear of their safety.
Jiyan Tosun, a member of Human Rights Association, is the daughter of Fehmi Tosun, who was forcibly disappeared in 1995. She has been seeking justice for her father and the other enforced disappearances together with Saturday Mothers/People. She provides legal support to women and LGBTI+ survivors at the Legal Assistance Office against Sexual Abuse and Rape in Detention.
On November 13, shortly after the deadly explosion that killed eight and wounded 81 people, a member of the Zafer Partisi (Victory Party), Adem Taşkaya, posted a tweet with the alleged attacker’s photo, saying that “the bomber is a PKK lawyer, Jiyan Tosun”.
Although Adem Taşkaya deleted the tweet later on, the fake information spread quickly on social media and various online platforms. The woman human rights defender started receiving a high volume of death threats which prompted her to file a complaint with the public prosecutor.
Jiyan Tosun also requested to be put under a protection scheme, as she is worried for her safety and security. She spent Sunday night at the courthouse.
A comprehensive list of personal details of all extended family members, containing their phone numbers, address and registry information was also shared on the internet sites, particularly on online gaming platforms, which resulted in the escalation of death threats by phone calls to all family members, including children.
She believes that this information could only be circulated by a public officer. Fearing for their security in light of the ongoing death threats, Jiyan Tosun and her family members are currently avoiding staying at their own home addresses.
Front Line Defenders (FLD) strongly condemns the targeting against Jiyan Tosun and her family, as well as the death threats. It expresses its deep concern for her physical security and emotional well-being and that of her family members.
It seeks Turkey authorities to ensure the security of Jiyan Tosun and her family against any possible physical attack and to investigate who serviced the private information of her and her extended family to online platforms and bring the responsible to justice;
It also want to take necessary measures to take down the private information from the Internet and iIssue a public statement assuring that Jiyan Tosun has been a victim of ake news and that all who threaten and spread fake news will be brought to justice;
FLD demand to gGuarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Turkey can carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear from all kinds of attacks, including targeting, intimidation, physical or online attacks, and free from all restrictions and reprisals.
