Decision by Election Council Preventing Prisoners, Convicts of Negligence from Voting

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Ahead of the local elections on March 31, the Supreme Election Council (YSK) has taken a decision which prevents prisoners and those who have been convicted of negligent offenses from casting votes.

As per the decision of the council which was published on the Official Gazette, the ones who have been arrested and those who have been convicted of negligent crimes will be eligible to vote "only in the electoral areas where they are registered and in those types of election."

In a previous decision taken by the YSK ahead of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections on June 24, 2018, while the ones convicted of intentional offenses were prevented from voting, those arrested or convicted of negligent crimes were allowed to cast votes.

Eligibility to vote only for provincial municipalities

According to the recent decision of the Council, the prisoners and the ones convicted for negligence, who are registered in the voter list of any province, but are held in a prison in another province, will not be eligible to vote by being registered in the prison voter list.

As for the prisoners and convicts who are held in a prison in the province where they are registered as voters, they also cannot cast votes for district municipalities, neighborhood units (mukhtar) and municipal council membership. They will be eligible to vote only for the municipalities of provinces where they are registered as voters.

Decision taken upon the application of AKP

As reported by BirGün daily newspaper on December 28, 2018, the related decision of the Supreme Election Council was taken upon the application of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) MP Mehmet Rüştü Tiryaki has commented on the decision as follows:

"Especially the majority of political prisoners are held in different prisons. The YSK took totally opposite decisions in 2005, 2009 and 2014. Moreover, those decisions permitting prisoners to vote were unanimously made. Now, they are depriving them of their right to elect and be elected."

According to the recent data announced by the Ministry of Justice, there are currently over 270 thousand prisoners and convict in prisons across Turkey. (HA/SD)