Vegan Inmate Osman Evcan Ends Hunger Strike After Acceptance of His Requests

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Upon the acceptance of his request by the prison administration, vegan inmate Osman Evcan has ended his hunger strike on its 44th day.

Evcan has been taken from the one-person cell, where he has been kept for two years, to another room and has been allowed to use his right to do sports and engage in conversation. Evcan will also be provided with a vegan menu.

"He thanks those who were side by side with him"

Osman Evcan, who was on hunger strike since March 26, 2018, did not get any vitamin supplements during his strike and accepted to take only water, lemon, salt and sugar.

Visiting her client today (May 8), the attorney of Evcan said that he fainted yesterday and was taken to the medical room. 60-year-old Evcan has fallen to 54 kilos.

After Evcan rejected treatment at the medical room, his requests were accepted by the prison administration. His attorney addressed the latest developments with the following words:

"They took him from the medical room directly to the new room. At the place where he is now staying, there are separate cells and a shared area where the inmates can go out to get air. They are now two inmates in the room, but they will be three. He will also be able to use his right to do sports and engage in conversation.

"He is very happy. He said that he thanked those who were side by side with him during this period."

What happened?

After being sentenced to life imprisonment in 1992, Evcan had gained the right to vegan-vegetarian nutrition for all vegan-vegetarian imprisoners in the wake of his 43-day hunger strike in 2011.

On March 28, 2012 "Amendment Regulations on Food Law Regulation for Convicted, Imprisoned and Penal Institution Employees" had been published on official journal. Thus the paragraph in the earlier regulation implying "sick convicted and imprisoned receive nutrition determined by the institution's doctor" was changed as "sick convicted and imprisoned receive nutrition determined by dietitians or doctors. Demands of convicted with special dietary habits due to their religion or vegan and vegetarian dietary habits are met under the condition of being limited to the amount of nutrition".

Evcan had carried his battle to the next level in his 33-day hunger strike and gained the right as he demanded in addition to preparing vegan-vegetarian meals with fresh and seasonal vegetables, that also obstacles before importing vegan food should be removed.

Evcan, imprisoned in Kandıra No 1 F-type Prison, had been on hunger strike since November 10 against the arbitrary restraint of his acquired rights.

He got poisoned by prison food

Having gone on hunger strike for four times before for vegan food rights and having managed to add vegan-vegetarian food article to the Food Regulation for Convicted and Imprisoned in 2012, Osman Evcan announced on March 26 that he had been on hunger strike again.

The primary request of Evcan, who got poisoned by the vegan food brought to him in October 2017, was that an investigation be launched into this poisoning incident.

After getting food poisoning in October 2017, Evcan stopped to eat prison food and started to eat the meals that he could cook with the tea-urn in his solitary prison cell. Having started to eat the prison food again in late February 2018, Evcan had severe stomach aches.

In his letter to the Freedom to the Earth Association, Osman Evcan also stated that since 2017, when he announced that he protested against the Eid El-Adha, he was sometimes served meals with meat and sometimes unidentifiable meals resembling dishwater. Evcan also wrote that he was subjected to the verbal harassment of the prison guards due to his atheism and veganism.

On the 38th day of his hunger strike, Osman Evcan fell to 54 kilos. (ÇT/SD)