İZMİR - Stating that the problems of ill prisoners cannot be solved with simple circulars and statements, İHD İzmir Branch President Zafer İncin said: “Legal arrangements must be made on the basis of universal principles, which will apply equally to all prisoners.”
Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdağ announced that, following the death of Vural Avar, one of the commanders sentenced in the February 28 trial, a circular was issued on "Proceedings on the Mitigation or Removal of Sentences of Persons Due to Persistent Illness, Injury and older". Minister Bozdağ requested that the applications of people in this situation be accepted as an evacuation procedure due to their illness. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Justice dated December 1, 2022, there are 336 thousand 315 prisoners and convicts in Turkey, while according to the April 2022 data of the Human Rights Association (İHD), there are 1,517 ill prisoners, 651 of whom are seriously ill.
POLITICAL PRISONERS WERE IGNORED
Although the problems in Turkey's prisons have continued for many years, violations of rights have increased exponentially, especially with the transition to Type F prisons, which intensified the isolation. The first regulation regarding these violations in the AKP period was made with the Ministry of Justice Circular No. 20 dated December 1, 2006. In the circular, the President's authority to mitigate or abolish the sentences of prisoners who are permanently ill, unable to stay in prison due to disability or old age was regulated, according to Article 104 of the Constitution, but since then, most of the applications for political prisoners have been ignored.
JUDICIAL PRISONERS WERE RELEASED
During the Kovid-19 pandemic process, in order to reduce the number of prisoners in prison, in accordance with the temporary article 9 added to the Law No. 5275 on the Execution of Penalties and Security Measures with the Law No. Two months' leave was granted with the amendment to the Execution Law No. 7242 enacted due to the pandemic. These permits were later extended. The release of judicial prisoners has been made easier, but the release of prisoners under the TMK has been made more difficult.
ADMINISTRATIVE OBSERVATION COMMITTEES
While arrangements were being made in the prison, on January 1, 2021, the Law No. 7242 on the Execution of Penalties and Security Measures and the Law on Amending Some Laws, and the Law No. 5275 on the Execution of Penalties and Security Measures, titled "Assessment of the convicts and determination of their good behavior" were published in the 89th Amendment. The article has been changed. Administrative and Observation Boards were established and an obstacle was created in front of the release of prisoners who completed their execution in the prison with this change. While the established committees imposed remorse on the prisoners, they took all the authority and made decisions instead of the court.
LAST CIRCULAR
Finally, the General Directorate of Criminal Affairs of the Ministry of Justice published a circular with the title of “Proceedings on the Mitigation or Abolition of Sentences of Persons Due to Persistent Illness, Injury and Older” dated January 2 and numbered 20/1. In the 8-item circular sent to all the institutions of the General Directorate of Criminal Affairs within the scope of Article 104 of the Constitution, it was stated that, the proceedings regarding the "authority to mitigate or remove the penalties" can be initiated ex officio without the request of the convicts.
Although regulations have been made many times since December 1, 2006 regarding prisons, the number of ill prisoners has increased approximately 6 times since 2011. IHD İzmir Branch Head Lawyer Zafer İncin made evaluations regarding the circular and legal regulations.