A British woman is on hunger strike in Turkey after being detained by police after she travelled intending to protest against this week’s NATO summit in Ankara.
Ella Vivier, a 26-year-old neuroscience graduate from Brighton, England who works as a support worker with vulnerable children, travelled to the Turkish capital.
She went after calls by Turkish political organizations, civil society groups and trade unions to oppose the summit, which started on Tuesday and was attended by world leaders including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and US President Donald Trump.
Vivier was detained on Sunday evening, along with three other protesters, according to her legal representatives in Ankara, Suhelya Oguz and Senem Doganoglu, and all four went on hunger strike on Monday.
Her legal representatives told the Press Association: “At the time of her detention, no reason or legal basis for the detention was explained to her. We were only later informed by the authorities that the investigation concerns an allegation of membership of an illegal organization.
“However, our examination of the investigation file has revealed no evidence supporting this allegation and no factual basis for the accusation has been disclosed to the defence.”
Vivier has not been charged with any crime and an investigation is being conducted on suspicion of “initiating provocative actions during the NATO summit,” her legal representatives said.
But they believe there is no offence defined under Turkish criminal law as “initiating provocative actions.”
“In our legal opinion, there are serious concerns regarding the lawfulness of the detention. Ella was not informed of the reasons for her detention at the time she was apprehended,” Oguz said.
A spokesperson for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said: “We are supporting the family of a British woman detained in Turkey and are in contact with the local authorities.”
Vivier’s partner, who asked not to be named, has not been able to make contact with her.
They said: “No-one, except the lawyer, has been allowed [to talk to her]. She’s been held in a counter-terror cell. Even the embassy haven’t been able to speak to her directly.”
“It’s been a completely unlawful detention,” they added.
“Her and the three other internationalists that she was arrested with were arrested pre-emptively before the summit had started, so before even taking part in any of the protests, so she hadn’t committed any crime.
“It’s been a purely preventative detention, which we consider to be in violation of fundamental human rights.
“Her and the other three internationalists have been on hunger strikes since their arrest in a protest against their conditions.”