Skip to main content

Dismissed civil servants continue fight to restore rights in Turkey

In recent weeks, Ankara has eased travel restrictions for some citizens prosecuted in Turkey’s post-coup crackdown, yet thousands of dismissed civil servants continue to struggle for their right to work.
Passport control signs are pictured at the international departure terminal of Ataturk airport in Istanbul, Turkey, January 8, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1F36DCFD80

ISTANBUL — Ali Riza Gungen has been fighting to get his job back since he was dismissed in November 2016. Once a professor of economics at 19 Mayis University in Samsun, he was among more than 800 academics prosecuted for signing a peace petition opposing military operations in the nation’s southeast that year.

Gungen and many other signatories were acquitted of terror-related charges in September, but he has been unable to recover his former position. Like most civil servants dismissed after the 2016 coup attempt, he was also restricted from traveling abroad. He has been pursuing legal avenues to get his passport reinstated.

Access the Middle East news and analysis you can trust

Join our community of Middle East readers to experience all of Al-Monitor, including 24/7 news, analyses, memos, reports and newsletters.

Subscribe

Only $100 per year.