Ankara - Rights group Human Rights Watch on Friday called on the Turkish government to fight police violence, saying that a reported rise in such violence in Turkey was linked to the government's failure to adequately prosecute those involved.

The New York-based group said police violence in Turkey has been exacerbated by changes to the law on police powers made in June 2007, which give police excessively broad discretion to use lethal force and encourage arbitrary stops and searches by police.

"Turkey needs to tackle its violent and trigger-happy policing culture," Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch said in a press release. "That can only happen if the criminal justice system holds the police to account for these serious crimes."

The report said the problem is also one of accountability with investigations into complaints often tainted by police interference and which rarely result in prosecutions or convictions.

"Victims of police violence we interviewed frequently told us that the police feel untouchable," Roth said. "That will only change if police officers who break the law are punished."

The Turkish government has a "zero-tolerance policy" when it comes to torture and has implemented a number of European Union-inspired laws to reduce torture rates but the EU has criticized the government over the slow implementation of reforms. (dpa)