‘Prisons are overcrowded, some prisoners sleep on the floor’

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Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Muş MP Gülüstan Kılıç Koçyiğit has held a statement for the press about the violations of rights in Turkey's prisons. She has underlined that "the state is obligated to provide the optimum physical and mental conditions for prisoners' wellbeing, to identify the problems in prisons and to develop solutions for these problems."

'No solution is found for contact visits'

In her statement at the Parliament today (October 30), the MP has listed the problems in prisons briefly as follows:

* Prisoners are very often concerned about their life safety.

* Prisoners are subjected to torture and lynch, which continue without interruption. Prisoners are threatened, insulted, sent to solitary confinement as a disciplinary punishment; these acts continue systematically.

* Seriously ill patients are not treated in any way at all, they are not referred to hospitals, the needs of disabled prisoners for treatment and the like are not met and they are subjected to physical torture.

* The letters sent to prisoners are not given to them in an arbitrary manner and letters are censored ... There is still a problem with ensuring that books and publications reach prisoners.

* Disciplinary punishments are implemented arbitrarily and they turn into a second punishment.

* The right to have a chat and spend time in the open is restricted.

* Prisoners are subjected to torture when they criticize the artbitrary practices in prison and these practices continue without interruption.

* The right of 10 prisoners to have a chat for 10 hours is limited to 3 hours.

* There is especially a lack of dentists in institutions.

* The period of visitation is limited or visitations are prevented altogether. Contact visits are not allowed during the COVID-19 pandemic and no solutions have yet been found for them.

* Cleaning and hygiene products are sold at extremely high prices in canteens and not every product can be found.

* There are problems with finding water for cleaning; as indicated by lawyers and families, especially the prisoners of Patnos Prison are still having problems with water. Even though these problems have been voiced since the outbreak of the pandemic, no solution is unfortunately found.

* As for the arbitrarily denied rights of children staying with their mothers, Gazel Bulut sent a letter to us and said that she wanted to stay with her daughter, but she was arbitrarily prevented from doing so.

* Prisoners are forced to be counted on foot and they are tortured when they do not abide by this.

*  Wards are crowded, some prisoners sleep on blankets on the floor.

* TV broadcasts are restricted; prisoners are not allowed to watch channels such as FOX TV, HALK TV, etc.

* There are not enough toilet and bathroom facilities.

* Heating system does not work in winter.

* Belongings are seized and personal writings are considered to be "terror" propaganda.

* Wards are raided suddenly and there is an increase in the number of investigations. (AS/SD)