JINHA

NEWS CENTER – Children's rights workers have launched a campaign for children under the age of six in Turkey's prisons, called "There's a Child Inside."

There are around 470 children under the age of six in Turkey's prisons, most of them detained alongside their imprisoned mothers. Volunteers from the association "Freedom Again for Children" have started a solidarity campaign to improve conditions for children in prisons—including by opening a primary school to serve the 53 small children in Istanbul's Bakırköy Women's Prison.

Three-year-old Y. has adjusted so well to the routine of the prison that the morning count has become a game. Y.wakes up before the guards and jumps out of bed to shout "get up, bunks!"Y. "sees the searches and counts as a game, but also knows that this is real," according to the child's mother.

Other parents say that a major problem is healthcare and healthy food for children and entertaining the children in the prison. 1-year-old F. played with television cables until recently, said the child's mother, Sevim.

F. "didn't know what a toy was," said Sevim. "They gave us a zebra toy from the nursery. My child was terrified. This was the first time F. saw a real toy."Sevim said her child also has aggression problems from living in the prison and has broken the new toy.

After starting a school in Bakırköy, the campaign plans to continue the project in six other prisons. The campaign is collecting donations to fund the schools and to start activities for children in prison.

(zd/fk/cm)