300 sick inmates in Turkey on the brink of death

Throughout a year that was marked by rights violation in the prisons, 70 inmates were dead because the administration failed to take necessary measures. Many sick inmates are kept in prisons with approval of the Forensic Medicine Institute (ATK,) although their conditions deteriorate.

Ministry of justice published a circular that decreases the level of authority by the ATK and gives much say to hospital reports to determine if any sick patient can survive in a penitentiary, but according to NGO’s covering the matter, that was only one part of the problems in the criminal justice system.

“The rights violations occur in the prisons because the justice administration attempts to dominate, subordinate and uniform inmates,” said Yusuf Cakas, from the Med Federation of Law and Solidarity Associations for Families of Detainees and Convicts.

“Ventilation times have decreased, social areas and social activities are completely off. You cannot stay healthy in a prison where you have no work, you are isolated, and forced to be part of a uniform. You can't get a diet, you can't eat, you can't go for a ventilation, you can't watch the movie you want, you can't read the book you want. You can't stay healthy that way," Cakas said.

He added: “There are several impediments to the treatments of inmates. If you resist to “mouth search,” physical examination accompanied by soldiers, handcuffs etc. they take you right back to the prison, without even being able to see the doctor.”

He continued: “In our data, only seriously ill prisoners were processed. There are around 300 sick prisoners. We can hear news about their deaths any minute. In principle, we accept every inmate as a sick prisoner.”