Human Rights in Mental Health Initiative, Turkey

One of the principles we have is that the majority of members are people with mental disabilities themselves. The mission of our organization is to create a new mental disability rights movement in Turkey by empowering people with mental disabilities and their families to fight for their own social and economic rights (e.g. right to employment, right to housing, right to education, etc.) and for their full participation in society. Social inclusion of people with mental disabilities requires struggle at various levels: social, economic, health-related, legal and IHRMH will work towards initiating change at all these levels.


The need for change in Turkey

According to WHO statistics, in Turkey, there are 1,5 million people with mental retardation and 1 million people with psychiatric disabilities. The only existing services consist of regional institutional care (with a capacity of 7000 beds), isolating them from life. Some people are locked at these places for tens of years, without any rehabilitation opportunities and in total inactivity, resulting in further disability and loss of their already existing skills. There are some NGOs that focus on the problems of people with mental disabilities. However, none of them is directed by people with mental disabilities themselves. As a result, they are insufficient in terms of guaranteeing the interests of people with mental disabilities. In addition, in the institutions, they are subjected to horrible human rights abuses such as electroshock without anesthesia, physical and sexual abuse, denial of medical care, denial of sufficent food and care, denial of informed consent, etc. and they do not have access to ways of legal struggle, such as having a legal representative.

How HRMHI Works Toward Change

Raising Public Awareness and Campaigning: HRMHI will inform the general public through its website, organizes monthly public events, where experiences of people with mental disabilites are shared with the general public, other NGOs and different professional groups. HRMHI also organizes press campaigns to advocate for the rights of people with mental disabilities. Currently, HRMHI campaigns for the adoption of UN Disability Rights Convention together with other disability groups. HRMHI organizes collaborative campaigns with other national and internaional NGOs. For example, in February 2007, horrible abuses in a psychiatric hospital were reported in press and HRMHI brought together 14 NGOs and published a collaborative protest letter demanding immediate reform, shared it with the government authorities and the general public. IHRMH also publicizes good examples of social inclusion of people with mental disabilities, if it comes across any.

Trainings for People with Mental Disabilities and Other Relevant Groups:

Human Rights Monitoring and Reporting for Policy Change: HRMHI visits institutions for people with mental disabilities and reports the human rights abuses to the government and to the general public.

Legal Struggle: HRMHI cooperates with a voluntary group of lawyers from Human Rights Agenda Association for defending legal cases of human rights violations against people with mental disabilities and provides legal consultancy to people with mental disabilities. HRMHI organizes advocacy skills training workshops for people with mental disabilites and different NGOs that are interested in the issue. Within the institutions, HRMHI will organize skills trainings for people with mental disabilities and human rights trainings for the staff.

Adres: Gazeteci Erol Dernek Sok. Hanif Han No:11/5 Beyoğlu İstanbul TURKEY
Tel: 0212 252 49 20
Fax: 0212 252 49 08
e-mail: ruhsagligindainsanhaklari@gmail.com