Medya News
Daily Review
Breaking News
Subscribe
  • Home
  • All News
  • Opinion
  • Kurdistan
  • Women
  • Politics
  • Human Rights
  • More
    • Audio Articles
    • Economy
    • Culture & Art
    • Ecology
    • Newsletter
    • Daily Review
Youtube
PODCAST
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • All News
  • Opinion
  • Kurdistan
  • Women
  • Politics
  • Human Rights
  • More
    • Audio Articles
    • Economy
    • Culture & Art
    • Ecology
    • Newsletter
    • Daily Review
Youtube
PODCAST
No Result
View All Result
Medya News

Letters point to an extreme abuse of prisoners rights in Turkish jails

Letters seen by Medya News and collated by journalist Mehmet Kizmaz paint a worrying and alarming picture of the prison population in Turkish jails and their abuse of internationally recognised prisoners rights.

3:22 pm 03/10/2022
A A
Letters point to an extreme abuse of prisoners rights in Turkish jails
Share post

Turkey’s prisons house hundreds of thousands of inmates, and according to letters and data collated by journalist Mehmet Kizmaz and shared with Medya News, those prisoners are subject to rights violations at an alarming rate.

According to the Ministry of Justice there were there were 314,502 convicted and remand prisoners as of 31 March 2022, equivalent to 1 per 269 of the population, having increased by a factor of 292% in the decade since 2011.

Some of the most common rights violations centre around communication, with publications, correspondence, access to independent media, visiting rights, telephone rights and social conversation rights withdrawn or severely restricted. But there are other issues too.

There are applications by prisoners to rights organisations in Turkey that are also increasing, with 506 applications made to the government-run Human Rights and Equality Institution of Turkey (TİHEK) in the first six months of this year. While applications to the courts by families and lawyers relating to the rights violations are often rejected, petitions submitted by prisoners are not even processed.

Communications

According to the letters and data collated by journalist Mehmet Kizmaz and shared with Medya News, every letter of those collated complained in some way of communication with the outside world being restricted, including the censorship of letters to families, the refusal of the prison authorities to post out letters to journalists, the arbitrary restriction or confiscation of books and magazines, and the shutting off of independent television channels, so that only state television was available for viewing.

Several people also spoke of limitations to the number of books. Gülay Efendioğlu in Kandira Prison in Kocaeli said they were limited to only three books a month, while Yasin Karasulu in prison in Izmir said that magazines were confiscated arbitrarily and that they were not allowed more than 10 books in a cell. Visiting rights are also often restricted as a form of disciplinary punishment, often for the offence of complaining when some other right is restricted, as in the case of Gökhan Gündüz in Izmir prison, who said that they had visiting rights “withdrawn because we asked to exercise our rights to books, publications and social conversation”.

Also, personal items like underwear, socks and towels sent in to prisoners are not passed on to them. Personal effects are seized on the pretext of ‘general searches’ of the prison wards. Veysel Şahin in prison in Bolu complained that, “a group of people who were not even prison staff entered our cells and took away a lot of our stuff, including books, magazines, writing and letters. We were beaten up for opposing it.”

Hygiene

Cells are not properly aired. Murat Kaymaz, in prison in Van, wrote that, “We are not even aggravated life [life meaning life] prisoners, but seven of us including sick people have been held in a one person cell for months on end”, while Gülay Efendioğlu said that in her prison, “Our commodes have been taken away,” and she complains also of the lack of food, and what food there is being “mouldy with maggots crawling out of it,” while Güven Usta in prison in Izmir reported that even “the use of water is subjected to quota”.

One subject currently under discussion by the public in Turkey is the transfer of prisoners to prisons far from their families against their wishes, as described by Resul Kocatürk in Kırıkkale prison, who wrote of “Eighty friends transferred against their wishes”.

Music and conversation

Most of the letters, seen by Medya News, also gave details of social restrictions within the prisons.

Güven Usta again: “We are only granted 3 hours of the 10 hours of social conversation we should be allowed by right. Instead of this, the prison administration has arranged lessons in the Quran. The place is more like a Quran school than a prison.”

Music is similarly restricted in some places, in the form of tapes and musical devices. And Yasin Karasulu in Izmir Prison explained how, “They would not allow me a classical flute which was sent to me, as it was deemed to be, a ‘dangerous weapon’.”

 


Share post
Tags: Trending

Related Posts

Ferit Şenyaşar applies to continue search for justice in parliament as HDP MP

Ferit Şenyaşar applies to continue search for justice in parliament as HDP MP

March 23, 2023
Medya News Daily Review: 23 March 2023

Medya News Daily Review: 23 March 2023

March 23, 2023
Guerrilla forces should not violate no-action period: HSM

Guerrilla forces should not violate no-action period: HSM

March 23, 2023
There’s nothing mysterious about SDF fighters in a chopper

There’s nothing mysterious about SDF fighters in a chopper

March 23, 2023
Will Turkey ban the pro-Kurdish opposition for the ninth time in succession?

Will Turkey ban the pro-Kurdish opposition for the ninth time in succession?

March 23, 2023
SDF holds ceremony for members killed in helicopter crash

SDF holds ceremony for members killed in helicopter crash

March 23, 2023

Videos

Medya News Daily Review: 23 March 2023
Daily Review

Medya News Daily Review: 23 March 2023

March 23, 2023

All News

Ferit Şenyaşar applies to continue search for justice in parliament as HDP MP

Medya News Daily Review: 23 March 2023

Guerrilla forces should not violate no-action period: HSM

There’s nothing mysterious about SDF fighters in a chopper

Will Turkey ban the pro-Kurdish opposition for the ninth time in succession?

SDF holds ceremony for members killed in helicopter crash

Medya News

Impressum

About us

Privacy Policy

Subscribe
Contact
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • All News
  • Opinion
  • Kurdistan
  • Women
  • World
  • Politics
  • Human Rights
  • Ecology
  • Economy
  • Culture & Art
  • Daily Review
  • Breaking News
  • Newsletter
  • Authors
  • Podcast

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT

Add New Playlist

Loading
Contact