Turkish Prison news

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Turkish Probe: Nov. 1, 1998

Tense amnesty waiting in prisons 

     Same issues : Whenever Turkey's membership in the European Union
     comes up, it is always confronted with issues of human rights,
     the situation in the southeast and the condition of its
     prisons. Although the country promises to resolve these problems,
     foreign authorities do not seem persuaded.

     Eyeing each other : It has been reported that soldiers and
     wardens kept their eye on one another instead of controlling the
     prisoners, both in prison buildings and in going to hearings.

     Demands urgent : Prisoners' demands are so urgent that the
     demonstrations in various prisons initiated by political
     prisoners are being supported by common criminals for the first
     time in Turkey.



ERHAN OZTURK 

The general amnesty issue which is raised by numerous party officials
or chairmen at the beginning of election periods was broached by the
Democratic Left Party (DSP) Deputy Chairwoman Rahsan Ecevit this
time. The amnesty issue has even been discussed at the Turkish
parliament. Yet, there has been no real progress on the amnesty issue
despite the fact that parliament has been in session for one month and
the legal and political prisoners in various prisons have shown their
solidarity through demonstrations.

The legal prisoners have one major demand from the authorities. They
say that if this issue is not resolved as soon as possible, no one can
guarantee that the demonstrations will end.

While Turkey regards acceptance into the European Union as a matter of
pride, it is always confronted with issues of human rights, the
situation in the southeast and the condition of its prisons. Despite
the fact that the country promises to resolve these problems in its
meetings with the European Union, foreign authorities do not seem
persuaded. It is even alleged that countries that have problems with
Turkey seek to intensify the opposition and use it against this
country.

The poor condition of prisons, which has not improved over the years
and is one of the major problems, was a thorn in the eye for many
Turkish governments. The dire condition of prisons, the disregard of
legal regulations, the use of handcuffs in bringing people to hearings
and the rough treatment in general have led prisoners to go on hunger
strikes. As a result, 12 individuals have died and a number of them
were crippled.

The hunger strike initiated by political prisoners made an impact not
only in Turkey but in Europe too, which considered applying legal
sanctions against Turkey. Sevket Kazan, ex-Minister of Justice and
former member of the defunct Welfare Party, said at the beginning of
the hunger strike that "These are minor things. We will not surrender
to a bunch of terrorists." While a number of politicians followed
Kazan's approach, other party representatives and members of civic
organizations took significant steps for the resolution of the
problem.

With the end of the hunger strikes, the demands of political prisoners
have been addressed to a large extent. However, the effect of reforms
has not been felt all over Turkey yet. Or as prisoners have claimed,
the public has not been sufficiently informed.

Clash of authority exacerbates problems 

The fact that the external security of Turkish prisons is maintained
by soldiers while the Ministries of Justice and the Interior also have
authority over prisons causes problems for both the common criminals
and the political prisoners. For instance, soldiers and the wardens,
who are responsible for internal order, have had some very serious
problems. The fact that drugs and weapons were smuggled into prisons
by some soldiers and wardens during the past years caused problems
between the soldiers and the Ministry of Justice. It has been reported
that soldiers and wardens kept their eye on one another instead of
controlling the prisoners, both in prison buildings and in going to
hearings.

Solidarity of common criminals and political prisoners 

In the past and today, party leaders and representatives raise
Turkey's sensitive political issues and make recommendations as
election periods approach. This behavior is generally seen as mere
election strategy. The press often reports on the poor condition of
political prisoners and common criminals in Turkey. For instance,
prisoners and their relatives often repeat that 120 people stay in
wards designed for 60, that prisoners have to sleep on the floors and
that they often catch diseases.

While the amnesty issue that was raised by Rahsan Ecevit, deputy
chairwoman of the DSP and wife of deputy prime minister Bulent Ecevit,
has been discussed in various circles, it was greeted with great
enthusiasm among the prisoners. Furthermore, especially legal
prisoners felt that they could start life anew after amnesty and made
future plans, which in turn prompted the authorities to take more
responsibility.

It has even been stated that the issue would be resolved before the
parliament went on holiday on October 29 and that there would
definitely be a decision on partial amnesty shortly afterwards. Yet,
the amnesty issue has not been discussed by government authorities
recently and political prisoners and common criminals have risen in
protest once again. Their demands are so urgent that the
demonstrations in various prisons initiated by political prisoners are
being supported by common criminals for the first time in Turkey.

"If there is no amnesty, demonstrations Will continue." 

The latest events indicate that the amnesty issue will cause further
problems for Turkey. Legal prisoner state that if party
representatives who brought amnesty on the agenda do not grasp the
gravity of the situation, they are likely to face very serious
problems.

"Amnesty is the most important problem for the prisoners. If the
government does not reevaluate its decision on this matter and reach a
decision, there will be major problems which will get worse with
time. In terms of the amnesty issue and the kind of crimes, we are not
in the same boat with the political prisoners. However we have common
problems resulting from our life in prison. Therefore we keep the
issue of amnesty on the agenda and support the prison demonstrations."

The condition of prisons, which has caused many problems for Turkey
both at home and abroad, is once again on the agenda. It is not clear
how the issue will be resolved, but the solidarity between legal and
political prisoners may cause new problems for Turkey. The parties
that raised the amnesty issue and gave their support should take
immediate action, or more demonstrations will be inevitable.

What happened in prisons last week 

The "Apo uprising" has spread to prisons in various Turkish
cities. The rebellion started at the Ceyhan and Bergama prisons and
was meant as a move against Syria, which sent Abdullah Ocalan, head of
the divisive PKK organization, to Moscow and then signed an agreement
with Turkey. The rebellion then spread to the E type prison in
Umraniye and to the Sagmalcilar, Cankiri, Bergama, Buca, Burca and
Canakkale prisons. Prisoners at the Ankara Central Closed Prison
called for amnesty as well.

Sixty wardens including some in the Umraniye, Bergama, Buca, Cankiri
and Canakkale prisons were taken hostage. Two soldiers and one fireman
who tried to put out the fire at the Bergama prison were
injured. While members of the outlawed Dev-Sol organization supported
the demonstrations, it was stated that right-wing prisoners did not
get involved. On the other hand, prisoners from the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK) set themselves on fire to protest Abdullah
Ocalan's trip to Russia.  Three out of five PKK militants who set
themselves on fire died.

At the uprising at the Umraniye E type prison, 32 officers and two
prison directors were taken hostage by imprisoned PKK members. When
news of the uprising spread, relatives of prisoners, including the
father of Pinar Selek who was arrested for the fire at the Egyptian
Bazaar, began to wait in front of the Umraniye Prison. In the
meantime, Caner Akay, the Umraniye district officer, entered the
Umraniye E type prison. 10 mobile striking buses, one armored
personnel carrier and an ambulance were placed in front of the prison
for security. Relatives of prisoners who were waiting in front of the
prison jumped in front of the military convoy, fearing an imminent
assault.

The striking mobile forces intervened at the Umraniye prison and
dispersed the relatives of the prisoners by using force. In his
statement, Istanbul Governor Erol Cakir said, "32 officers and two
prison directors were taken hostage. At this point, we are not
planning on doing anything. However, the information we have indicates
that these actions which have spread all over Turkey are being
instigated at one place." Following a meeting between Yucel Sayman,
head of the Istanbul Bar, and Ferzan Citici, Istanbul's republic
prosecutor, three lawyers were allowed to go into the prison to talk
with the authorities.

At the Bergama E type prison, suspects for terrorist actions
demonstrated early last week to protest the incarceration of inmates
in the Ceyhan prison in special rooms. At the Ceyhan prison, there had
been an attempt to escape by digging a tunnel beneath the prison
building.

The convicts at the Bergama prison broke the windows and started
shouting slogans in the evening hours. They took hostage four
guardians and started fires in the wards. A special team was formed at
the republic prosecutor's office to deal with the rebellion. The
gendarmerie and police took a series of precautions around the prison
and inside it. Two soldiers and one fireman who intervened to put out
the fire were injured and brought to the Bergama State
Hospital. Bergama Republic Prosecutor Osman Vuraloglu stated that the
necessary precautions had been taken, saying, "There have been no
confrontations. We are in full control. We are not considering a
police operation."

At the Cankiri E type closed prison, there were uprisings in two wards
where prisoners from Dev-Sol were incarcerated. Last Monday morning, a
number of prisoners closed the prison doors, taking nine wardens
hostage. While authorities have met to find a solution to the
problems, police, gendarmes, firemen and ambulances wait ready in case
new events take place.

In the Izmir Buca closed prison, a fire started in one of the women's
wards and the rebellion quickly spread to other parts of the
prison. As a result of the fires in Blocks Two and Three, a number of
policemen, gendarmes and firemen were brought to the prison. One
officer was stabbed with a skewer.  While the fire was extinguished,
the rebellion spread to the wards of the illegal Revolutionary
Peoples' Liberation Party (DHKP) and PKK members.

At the Ankara Central Closed prison, there was a rebellion in the
section of the political prisoners.  Other prisoners joined in the
rebellion, asking for amnesty. It was reported that gun shots were
heard from the prison wards. Cevdet Saral, head of the Ankara police
forces, went into the prison, followed by the striking mobile forces
that surrounded the prison. Fire troopers and an ambulance were called
to the prison. According to preliminary information, some of the
prisoners were wounded.

At the Bursa special prison, a group of prisoners took hostage four
wardens and started a hunger strike. Reportedly, gendarmes and
striking mobile force members took security measures around the
prison.

At the Canakkale E type prison, prisoners closed the doors to the
section where the wards are located, taking hostage nine wardens. In a
public statement after this event, Minister of Justice Hasan
Denizkurdu said, "Everything is under control. We are collecting
information on the developments. Thirty-four prison officers are being
held hostage in Istanbul. With instructions issuing from one center,
an insurrection has started in a number of prisons. We will not
intervene.  We will resolve the problem very soon."

-- 
Press Agency Ozgurluk
For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan!
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