Ministry doesn’t permit HDP MP Gergerlioğlu to visit Kurdish politician, ill prisoner Tuğluk

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The Ministry of Justice has not allowed Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, also a medical doctor, to visit former HDP MP and ill prisoner Aysel Tuğluk in Kandıra Prison.

Diagnosed with "dementia", Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk was given a report of "she cannot stay in prison" by the Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine. However, the İstanbul Forensic Medicine Institution's report has concluded that Tuğluk is "in a state to stay in prison."

With the execution of her sentence not deferred based on the latter report, HDP MP Gergerlioğlu, who frequently raises concerns about the violations of rights in prisons, wanted to visit Aysel Tuğluk; however, this request has been rejected by the Justice Ministry.

Gergerlioğlu has spoken to bianet about the rejection of the Ministry and the contradictory medical reports of the Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine and the İstanbul Forensic Medicine Institution.

The MP has recalled that the permission of the Justice Ministry is stipulated to visit prisoners serving time on "terror charges". He has underlined that he made several applications, but his applications were rejected every time without a reason being cited for the rejection.

According to HDP's Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, he is not given permission to visit due to his criticisms of the Justice Ministry, adding that the prison administration takes up a similar attitude as well.

'No medical statements in the report'

Gergerlioğlu, as a medical doctor himself, has commented on the reports of the Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine, which concluded that Aysel Tuğluk could not stay in prison and the execution of her prison sentence should be deferred, and the İstanbul Forensic Medicine Institution, which has concluded that Tuğluk can stay in prison.

According to the MP, "the report of the Forensic Medicine Institution does not contain medical statements." He has briefly said:

"Nine professors at Kocaeli University say, 'She definitely cannot stay in prison, the execution should be deferred' and express this in medical findings. In its report, the Forensic Medicine Institution says, 'She is trying to deceive us, there is no need for deferral.'

"They even consider it to be a ruse how she sat on the chair. Such situations occur in dementia and it is very frequently encountered. The disease is obvious. These are not medical statements."

'It takes her minutes to pick up the receiver'

Referring to the hippocratic oath, Gergerlioğlu has underlined that physician cannot discriminate on any grounds, political or religious:

"All physicians take the hippocratic oath. Physicians shall not discriminate but the Forensic Medicine Institution obviously discriminates on political grounds. Our fellow MPs who visit her in prison say that they instruct her to pick up the receiver and even this takes minutes.

"They also say that a long time passes until she fixes her chair and sits, she forgets the words or what she will say and there are problems in her speaking. There is something even the ones who are not doctors sense but the Forensic Medicine Institution says, 'We are being deceived.' Its decision is completely political. There is no medical explanation for this."

Gergerlioğlu in front of the prison

As the Justice Ministry has not permited him to visit Aysel Tuğluk in prison, HDP Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu went in front of the Kandıra Prison today (January 6) and made a statement there.

In his speech in front of the prison, he briefly said, "Aysel Tuğluk is suffering from great violations of rights. According to medical reports, Aysel Tuğluk must be taken out of the prison as soon as possible. We may face a more severe consequence if this is not done."

What happened?

On December 29, 2016, when she was the Vice Co-Chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), Kurdish politician Aysel Tuğluk was arrested along with seven other politicians from the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) and the Democratic Society Congress (DTK).

The indictment filed against Tuğluk, who was the DTK Co-Chair till September 2014, brought her statements to the press as well as the funerals that she attended as criminal evidence against the politician.

On March 16, 2018, the Ankara 17th Heavy Penal Court sentenced Aysel Tuğluk to 8 years in prison as per the Anti-Terror Law (TMK) no. 3713. Increasing this prison term by half, the court then gave a 12-years prison sentence to the politician. Lastly, it has decreased this prison sentence by one sixth and ruled that she shall be sentenced to 10 years in prison.

As Aysel Tuğluk's appeal to the Ankara Regional Court of Justice was rejected, her file was sent to the Court of Cassation.

Her mother's funeral

Aysel Tuğluk's mother Hatun Tuğluk lost her life in 2017. Upon her last will, her deceased body was brought to the İncek Cemetery in Ankara. Aysel Tuğluk left prison by permission and her mother was laid to rest; shortly afterwards, a group of 5-6 people gathered to protest the funeral.

The ones who attended the funeral said that this number gradually increased and they tried to attack the grave.

As the attacks continued, the deceased body of Hatun Tuğluk had to be removed from the ground and laid to rest somewhere else. One of the people who attacked the funeral turned out to have a picture with Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu at the police station.

Health problems

Aysel Tuğluk's elder brother Alaattin Tuğluk said that his sister had a memory loss after their mother's passing:

My sister didn't look fine. She asks the same question 3-4 times. She doesn't remember some things. For instance, when she wants to ask about someone from the family, she says, 'Who was that, who?' They are close people, it is impossible for her to not know them. I am concerned that this will come to an irreversible point and that we will lose my sister... I want treatment before it is too late. Let another committee examine her and give a decision accordingly. She is given 1-2 medications now. It is not enough. She will go [to jail] after her treatment ends.

About Aysel Tuğluk

Politician.

She was the founding member and Co-Chair of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) and elected Diyarbakır MP in 2007-2009. She became the Van MP of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in 2011-2015. She served as the Vice Co-Chair of the HDP responsible for Law and Human Rights.

Aysel Tuğluk was also a member of the Society and Law Studies Foundation Executive Board, a member of the Human Rights Association (İHD) and the founder of the Patriotic Women's Association.

Born in Elazığ in 1965, she graduated from the Faculty of Law of İstanbul University and worked as a self-employed lawyer. (RT/SD)