Fatin Kanat
Fatin Kanat is a human rights defender and the co-chair of Ankara branch of Human Rights Association since 2019. In 1981, following the military coup in Turkey, Fatin Kanat was prosecuted for his political views and spent 15 years in prison. In 1996, he was released from prison and got actively involved in human rights activism. The human rights defender is also a documentary film maker, having directed films focusing on human rights violations. He is also the co-founder of "Sinetopya", a cinema production and activism organisation and works in the organisation of the International Labour Film Festival.
Human rights defenders (HRDs) in Turkey have been subjected to judicial harassment, including criminal prosecution, violent attacks, threats, surveillance, prolonged arbitrary detention, and ill-treatment. In the aftermath of an attempted coup in July 2016, the environment for the work of HRDs deteriorated even further.
