Arbitrary practices and unlawful delays in the release of prisoners continue in prisons across Kurdistan and Turkey, where 103,179 inmates are held beyond capacity.
Under normal circumstances, prisoners should be released after serving three-quarters of their sentence. However, since the enforcement law enacted in 2020, Administration and Observation Boards have subjected inmates to three-month, six-month, and annual evaluations.
Bolu F Type Prison is among the facilities where such unlawful practices are most prevalent. Last month, the prison’s Administration and Observation Board postponed the release of 35 prisoners on the grounds that they were “not of good conduct.”
Of these 35 prisoners, 33 have been behind bars for three decades. Their release has been delayed entirely on arbitrary grounds, often citing “low scores” as justification.
One of these prisoners is Halil Dağ, whose release has been postponed seven times. Sentenced to life imprisonment in the 1990s, Dağ has been held in various prisons over the years and was most recently transferred to Bolu F Type Prison.
Despite having completed 30 years of his sentence, he has been unlawfully kept in prison for the past 21 months, with his release delayed seven times. Dağ is also struggling with chronic illnesses. The repeated postponement of releases in a prison environment where proper medical treatment is inaccessible puts prisoners’ lives at serious risk. The inmates are calling for this injustice to be made known to the public.
Halil Dağ’s lawyer, İpek Sarıca, spoke about both his current situation and conditions in Bolu Prison. Sarıca stated that human rights are being openly violated in the facility and described how prisoners face severe abuses both in hospitals and inside the prison itself.
All decisions are arbitrary
İpek Sarıca emphasized that during the sentence deferment process in Bolu Prison, only three people have been released, while many others in the same situation have not been granted release. She said that the decisions are made entirely on an arbitrary basis.
She noted that most appeal petitions are only partially processed, and that three-month extensions imposed through periodic evaluation decisions often spill into the fourth month before the decision is finalized.
Repentance is being imposed
According to Sarıca, the reasons given for denying Halil Dağ’s release include “limited social interactions,” “not being an active student,” “lack of requests to participate in activities,” and “past disciplinary penalties.” She added that even trivial matters, such as leaving the light on in the ward during the day, have been used as excuses.
The most absurd justification, she said, was the claim that “he has been staying in the same ward as organization members since 2017.” Sarıca questioned, “Placement is under the authority of the administration, so how can this be a justification?” She also stated that a policy of enforced “effective remorse” is being imposed.
Not released despite completing 30 years
İpek Sarıcasaid, “Halil Dağ has completed 30 years of his sentence, and 21 more months have passed since then. Yet he is still not released. Every three months, the process is extended with the same arbitrary justifications. This is a clear violation of both legal safeguards and human rights. There is an urgent need for an independent and impartial regulation of the enforcement law.”
Medicines are withheld, double handcuffing is used
In Halil Dağ’s ward at Bolu F Type Prison, there is also another seriously ill inmate. Sarıca noted that there are serious obstacles to the right to health for sick prisoners, outlining both the deficiencies in medical services and the unlawful practices in the sentence deferment process.
She explained that the transfer of ill prisoners to hospitals often takes place months after requests are submitted, that they are subjected to double handcuffing during transfers, and that they are kept waiting for long periods in hot conditions inside prison transport vehicles during the summer months.
Sarıca said, “Medicines prescribed by doctors are not provided on time, sometimes they arrive months later, and sometimes not at all.” She also pointed out that transfer documents specify the charges for which the prisoner is incarcerated, and that some doctors use this information in a discriminatory manner.
Sentence deferment decisions obstruct access to healthcare
İpek Sarıca said, “One of my clients requested that the handcuff on his wrist be removed during a blood draw. Although the law enforcement officer approved, the healthcare staff said, ‘Do not remove it.’ Unfortunately, such incidents happen frequently.” She added that sentence deferment decisions also obstruct access to healthcare, causing illnesses to progress.
Lawyer İpek Sarıca also drew attention to the 2024 report on Turkey by the United Nations Committee Against Torture, stated, “The report clearly states that the Administration and Observation Boards are neither independent nor impartial, and that prisons have deviated from their purpose, turning into places of punishment.”
Source: ANF News
