A delegation comprising the representatives of Council of Europe and experts from the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Türkiye (HREIT) visited the Aydın Removal Centre on 25 August 2022, within the scope of the Action “Strengthening the Human Rights Protection of Migrants and Victims of Human Trafficking in Turkey”.

HREIT organises regular monitoring visits to facilities where individuals are deprived of their liberty, such as prisons, detention centres and removal centres, as the institution acting as the national prevention mechanism, which aims to protect and promote human rights, guarantee the right to equal treatment, and ensure effective combatting against torture and ill-treatment.

Within the scope of the monitoring visit to Aydın Removal Centre, interviews were held with officials and foreigners at the Centre. During the visit, the situation of common areas, accommodation conditions and overall treatment for foreigners deprived of their liberty were examined in the context of national and international standards.

It is observed during the monitoring visits that the capacity building activities organised within the framework of the Action have successfully served the purpose of reinforcing the human rights-centred approach at the relevant institutions.

On the occasion of the monitoring visit, the Delegation also made a courtesy visit to Deputy Governor of Aydın, Mr Mehmet Gödekmerdan, and received brief information about the activities carried out in the context of irregular migration management in Aydın.

The activity was organised within the framework of the Action “Strengthening the human rights protection of migrants and victims of human trafficking in Turkey”, which is a part of the European Union/Council of Europe collaboration titled “Horizontal Facility-II for the Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022”.