Ella Vivier, a 26-year-old neuroscience graduate from Brighton, went to protest this week’s NATO summit in Turkey’s capital Ankara when she was detained
Anti-NATO protestors gather in Taksim Square in Istanbul (file)(Image: Getty Images)
A British woman has gone on hunger strike after she was detained with no reason given, her representatives say, when she travelled to Ankara to protest this week’s NATO summit.
Ella Vivier, a 26-year-old neuroscience graduate from Brighton, travelled to the Turkish capital after calls by Turkish political organisations, civil society groups and trade unions to oppose the summit.
The NATO meeting started on Tuesday and was attended by world leaders including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and US President Donald Trump.
Ms Vivier, who works as a support worker with vulnerable children, was detained at approximately 9pm on Sunday, along with three other protesters, her legal representatives in Ankara said.
All went on hunger strike on Monday after her representatives in Ankara, Suheyla Oguz and Senem Doganoglu, said the four had been arrested and detained with no reason given.
Her legal representatives said: “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 organisation.
“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.”
Ms 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,” Ms Oguz said.
A spokesperson for the 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.”
Ms 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.”
A spokesperson for Ms Vivier’s MP, Brighton Pavilion Green Sian Berry, said: “Sian is aware of their detention and is in touch with Ella’s family as her constituency MP.
“Sian and her casework team have already made contact with the FCDO and are doing what they can to assist Ella and her family. She will continue to do what she can to ensure their safe return to the UK.”
Ms Oguz said she believed Ms Vivier’s human rights had been violated, including during her arrest and transport to detention, and at a hospital where she was taken for a health check.
She was also required to sign documents written entirely in Turkish, which she could not read or understand.
“These allegations raise serious concerns regarding her right to liberty and security, her right of access to legal assistance, her right to a fair trial, her right to dignity and privacy, and the prohibition of ill-treatment,” Ms Oguz said. “We believe these allegations require a prompt, effective and independent investigation.”
