Gergerlioğlu: Inmates Writing About Hunger Strikes Given Disciplinary Punishment As Well
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Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, who is also a member to the Human Rights Investigation Commission of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM), has held a press conference about the violation of rights committed in prisons.
In his speech, Gergerlioğlu has also addressed the issues such as seriously ill prisoners who are not referred to hospital or released from prison, overcrowding in prisons, the transfer of inmates to remote prisons, pregnant women inmates and problems encountered in visitations.
"320 people in total on an irreversible hunger strike"
In his speech on Friday (February 8), Gergerlioğlu also specifically focussed on the condition of the inmates on hunger strike.
HDP Hakkari MP Leyla Güven, who started her hunger strike in prison, has been on the 96th day of her strike. Güven was released on January 25, 2019. Gergerlioğlu stated that 301 inmates, 54 of whom are women and 247 of whom are men, as well as 19 other politicians and activists have been on an irreversible hunger strike with the demand that the isolation on Kurdistan Workers Party's (PKK) imprisoned leader Abdullah Öcalan be removed.
"Hunger strikers given disciplinary punishment"
Stating that the rights of inmates who are on a hunger strike are being systematically violated, Gergerlioğlu shared the following information based on the prison visits of lawyers:
* A disciplinary investigation has been launched against all inmates who have started a reversible-indefinite and irreversible-indefinite hunger strike. A disciplinary punishment has been given to the inmates who are on a hunger strike in Bandırma No. 2 Type T Prison in Çanakkale.
* In the Gebze Women's Closed Prison, the director of the prison threatened the hunger strikers with interfering in their strikes in the event that they continue their protests.
"Disciplinary punishment for letters and faxes as well"
* Prison administrations have also launched disciplinary investigations into the faxes and letters sent by inmates regarding hunger strikes.
* Several prison administrations do not provide hunger strikers with Vitamin B or carbonate. The vitamins that they are currently taking were given to them when they visited the infirmary the last time. We have also been informed that some prisons do not have the carbonate necessary for the inmates. Hunger strikers are sometimes not given lemons, either.
* Since five five inmates who have been on an irreversible hunger strike in Bandırma No.1 Type T Prison do not accept being taken to the infirmary, they cannot receive any health checks.
* The inmates who have started an indefinite-irreversible hunger strike in Elazığ No.1 High Security Prison are held in three-person rooms without anyone accompanying them. (AS/SD)