JINHA

ANTALYA – The Antalya Bar has charged prison administrators with covering up a child sexual violence case in which child prisoner A.N. was beaten by seven other children. The children also attempted to rape A.N. and threatened him with death.

The case, which took place May 24, 2014 in Antalya's L-type prison, has only now come to light. The Antalya Heavy Criminal Court has now begun to see the case of the seven minors, charged with committing bodily harm, sexual abuse and death threats when they locked fellow prisoner A.N. in a dark room.

The Antalya Bar Association says charging the children is insufficient and has submitted charges against prison administrators to the Antalya Chief Prosecutor. They say prison administrators willfully ignored and gave opportunities for the attack to take place against A.N., in a violation of international agreements to which Turkey is a signatory, not to mention Turkish constitutional and criminal law.

The charges point out that evidence of the extent of violence, derogatory insults and attempts at rape in the child prisoners' bunkhouse is plain to see in reports from the L-type prison.

Mentally ill children were found not to be taking their medicine, instead setting it aside to use to incapacitate and attempt rape against other children.

Adult sexual abuse of children was also present in the prison, where the door connecting the children's and adults' bunkhouses was left open. Reports reflect adult prisoners frequently asked child prisoners for "massages" to create an opportunity for rape and sexual abuse. Bathrooms appeared to be a common site for rape in the prison.

(hy/fk/mg/cm)