Hundreds of Minors Prosecuted as "Terrorists" in Turkey

In Turkey, hundreds of minors have been arrested and jailed under new antiterrorism laws that allow for them to be tried as adults and even be accused of "committing crimes in the name of a terrorist organization" for participating in demonstrations.

"There is a lack of proportionality between the crime and the sentence," says Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey researcher for the New York-based watchdog group Human Rights Watch. "Counting what these children do, such as throwing stones or damaging property, as a terrorism offense is a problem."

"You are subject to a court system that doesn't see you as a child," adds Ms. Sinclair-Webb.

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As part of its European Union membership drive, Turkey has updated its penal code to more closely reflect European and international standards. But observers say the country took a step backward with a 2006 amendment to the country's antiterror law that made it possible to try minors between the ages of 15 and 18 as adults when the crime is deemed to involve terrorism.