Turkey

Following a coup attempt in 2016, the government imposed a state of emergency allowing rule by decree. Turkish authorities dismissed over 150,000 public officials due to alleged coup links, with courts jailing over 64,000 more on terrorism charges. An April 2017 referendum approved an executive presidency with weakened judicial and parliamentary checks. Over 150 journalists and media workers, as well as 9 parliamentarians of the pro-Kurdish opposition party, are behind bars. Judicial decisions are often politicized. Turkey hosts around 3.5 million Syrian refugees, more than any other country, but many face obstacles accessing education and employment, and new arrivals face closed borders and risk deportation.