İnan Süver is a Turkish

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

who served a prison term for desertion from the Turkish Armed Forces. Süver was drafted by the Turkish Armed Forces in 2001. He served for thirteen months before deserting, apparently on a release with an order to return to his unit. Though Süver stated that he was unaware of the principle of conscientious objection at the time of his desertion, he declared himself a conscientious objector in a letter to the military in 2009. In May 2010, he told a reporter, "widespread knowledge about conscientious objection would be the end of the war": On 5 August 2010, Süver was arrested in his home on an outstanding warrant for

desertion Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which ar ...

. He was then taken to military prison in Istanbul. On 24 August, the Aegean Armed Forces Command Court found Süver guilty of "infringement of leave". He had three previous convictions for desertion. On 8 October, Süver was transferred to

Buca prison Buca (, ) is a district of İzmir Province, Turkey. It is one of the main urban districts of İzmir Metropolitan Municipality. History Buca was one of the preferred settlement areas of İzmir's community of Levantines. The great mansions they bu ...

in İzmir, where he was repeatedly hospitalized as a result of his health deteriorating from hunger strikes. On 5 April 2011, he was transferred to Manisa Saruhanlı semi-open prison, which he escaped sixteen days later. He was re-arrested the following day at the home of a friend, and returned to Buca prison. In 2010,

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

and War Resisters' International issued calls for Süver's release, with War Resisters' International adding their fears that he would face torture or other ill-treatment during his imprisonment. Amnesty International also named him a prisoner of conscience. When the band U2 visited Turkey in September 2010,

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...

called on Prime Minister

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician serving as the List of presidents of Turkey, 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as prime minister of Turkey from 2003 to 2014 and as Lis ...

to investigate Süver's treatment, and reported that Erdoğan agreed to "look into it." Süver was conditionally released from Balıkesir prison on 9 December 2011. In September 2012 he was re-arrested in Istanbul and given a five-month prison sentence for his April 2011 escape. He was released on 12 October, as his previous pre-trial detention also counted toward the sentence. İnan Süver has a wife, Remziye Süver.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suver, Inan Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Turkey Living people Turkish prisoners and detainees Turkish conscientious objectors Year of birth missing (living people)