Political women prisoners jailed in E type-prison in Diyarbakır, express problems they have. Women declared that there is lack of space in the prison with the increasing numbers of arrestments, 41 prisoners kept in a wing with a 13 person capacity, and 26 prisoners in a wing 8 person capacity. Women suffered from lack of space in jail, have to sleep in front of toilet doors which induces lots of diseases. Women detainees and convicted prisoners, report that prison administration do not pay attention to their suggestions on behalf of solution.

Nuran AKTAŞ- JINHA

AMED - Political women prisoners jailed in E type-prison in Diyarbakır, express problems they have. Women declared that there is lack of space in the prison with the increasing numbers of arrestments, 41 prisoners kept in a wing with a 13 person capacity, and 26 prisoners in a wing 8 person capacity. Women suffered from lack of space in jail, have to sleep in front of toilet doors which induces lots of diseases. Women detainees and convicted prisoners, report that prison administration do not pay attention to their suggestions on behalf of solution.

With arrestments increasing in recent period, there occurs a serious problem of space in the prisons. Political women prisoners in Diyarbakır E type Prison, announced the problems they live in prison via a letter they wrote. Since there is not enough bed, three women have to share one bed, and they have to sleep in front of the toilet door causing serious diseases, they said. Beside, prison conditions in which ill and healthy women stay together causes lots of health problems, they mentioned. Prisoners declaring their problems related to nourishment, sheltering, water and health said that their meetings with the administration was not taken into consideration.

"All the injustice against them, is against us"

Besna Kızılkaya, mother of Herdem Kızılkaya, political prisoner jailed in Diyarbakır E type Prison, said health, nourishment, sheltering and water problems in the prison are increasing every day. Mother Besna, declares her only wish as a would be solution to these problems. They could not stand their children being raped, tortured  in prisons as mothers, says mother Besna. " Along with penalties seem worthy to our children, we do not accept these injustices. State has to be in charge of every person they have jailed." she said. She points out that they feel all the tortures and cruelties directed to their children as directed to themselves and this hurts their heart. Mother Besna, underlining the necessity of finding an urgent solution regarding the problems in E type Prison, says conscription process has to be started urgently.

" They are not even able to breathe easily"

Lawyer Reyhan Yalçındağ, who points out Diyarbakır E type-prison as one of the prisons in which number of prisoners heavily increased as a result of operations conducted under the name of KCK, says that in last 3 years the meetings of prisoners held with prison administration proposing a solution to the problem of place in prison remain inconlusive. Reyhan, remarking there are 41 prisoners kept in a wing for 13 person and 26 prisoners kept in a wing for 8 person, says " all of the women have to share their beds. Political women staying in two wings, have to sleep over blankets on floor and even over the kitchen tables." Reyhan, underlining 444 children staying with their mothers in the prison, expresses the negative effects of lack of place over those children. She says, it is difficult for the women prisoners even to be able to breathe in their living spaces. Their right of communication, nutrition and sheltering are constantly violated, she remarks.

"They also have right to pass their last days together with their beloved ones!"

Underlining the fact that internationally accepted prison standards of UN are not taken into consideration by Turkey, Reyhan says,"the Ministry of Justice, as part of the status quo, constantly issues regulations making the life in the prisons more isolated, oppressive, cut out from the outside world, turning health conditions inside into a negative stage. In total, all these are practices against human rights and dignity.” While pointing to the fact that rights for prisoners just exist on paper Reyhan says, “If you have are oppositional, if you have a political stance, if you are in prison, you will face all kinds of practices against yourself and will also be discriminated by law.” In criticizing the negligence continuing in the prisons and remembering that there was an incident of intoxination at the Closed E Type-Prison in Mardin she stresses that such mistakes which were shown as something unimportant can cost lives.

‘We will follow the issue until the problems are solved’

While trying to head toward a solution, Reyhan notes that primarily other forensic control measurements have to be taken than confinement-security. She continues as follows:

“All these problems are the result of the insistence on continuing with the status quo regarding the non-solution of the Kurdish problem parallel with the security concept of the sovereign state. If this continues, Turkey will be in such a state that it will feel honored and boast by constructing new prisons. Besides this, we know that women are exposed to multiple practices of discrimination. As applicants of human rights we will continue to deplete the existing procedures. We will be watching over all these things so that they can live in more humane conditions and until they finally gain their freedom.”

 (na/gk/hp/eb)

Translator: Elif Berk