We express our full solidarity with Paula Maier, a German participant in a youth delegation to Bakur/Northern Kurdistan in January 2026. She publicly stated today that she was raped by officials while in Turkish deportation detention.
In January 2026, as part of Rojava solidarity, a youth delegation travelled to Bakur/Northern Kurdistan to visit the protests on the ground and exchange with local democratic forces. The delegation was part of the People’s Caravan, an initiative of direct international solidarity with the Rojava Revolution, which came under massive attack by the Syrian government in January.
On the fifth day of their journey, the 16 activists were detained by the Turkish military. Numerous detainees later reported physical, psychological and sexual violence during their imprisonment.
Paula Maier reports: “We were not allowed to close our eyes or sleep, lean against anything or sit down. They kicked and beat us, sometimes until we lost consciousness. We were insulted and spat on; our braids were rubbed against the officers’ crotches or torn out. We were forced to watch videos of abused fighters.”
She adds: “During my time in solitary confinement I was raped by a Turkish official.”
Violence denounced for decades
For decades, prisoners, especially women have denounced similar incidents in Turkish prisons. In a statement published on 20 August 2025, Amnesty International once again condemned torture and rape in Turkish prisons. Torture and sexual violence are, unfortunately, a reality for many detainees in Turkey. Yet European states that present themselves as defenders of human rights maintain friendly relations with ruker Erdoğan. The recent NATO conference in Ankara is another example of this.
International solidarity in the face of repression
For several years, more and more activists have been engaged in international solidarity and have tried in various ways to support people worldwide who are confronted with war and oppression. This applies in particular to the flotillas to Gaza, the internationalists in Rojava and the People’s Caravan.
In return, these activists themselves face repression. During their detention, even when it is only short-term, they are repeatedly subjected to violent and humiliating methods. These represent only a fraction of what Kurds and democrats are exposed to on a daily basis in Turkish prisons, or Palestinians in Israeli prisons. The intensification of repression against internationalists is also a reaction to the growing awareness among peoples worldwide of their common interests and the need to build international solidarity in the face of war, oppression and the violence of the states that oppress them.
We call for solidarity
We express our unrestricted solidarity with Paula Maier as well as with all detainees who are subjected to sexual violence in war and in prisons.
We call on non-governmental organisations, democrats, elected representatives and political decision-makers to take a stand on this issue and to publicly condemn the inhumane treatment of detainees in Turkey.
