ANKARA - Hatice Onaran from İHD stated that imprisoned women are fighting against inhuman practices and called for solidarity.

 

Violence against women, which the AKP has made a policy of, is experienced not only outside, but also in prisons. Attacks on prisoners in prisons, which amounted to torture, reached the level of sexual assault, rape and harassment. The fact that Garibe Gezer, being held in Kandıra No. 1 F Type Prison, was subjected to torture and put in solitary confinement again and again, and raped when she resisted the torture, revealed the extent of the violence that prisoners experience in prisons.

 

Hatice Onaran, member of the İHD Prisons Commission, spoke about the violations of rights experienced by women in prisons.

 

Pointing out that the current isolation policies have deepened with the pandemic measures, Onaran said that the pressures have increased with the transition from the ward system to the cell system in prisons. Reminding that prisoners are sometimes punished for making cakes out of biscuits, Onaran said, "They told that the biscuits were used for another purpose than its intended purpose. We are faced with such ridiculous situations."

 

STRIP SEARCH

 

Onaran underlined that the prisoners do not have access to food and hygiene products and said: "We also know that there are no masks or that they are trying to give it at very exorbitant prices. The prisoners are not even taken to the infirmary. Especially in Bakırköy Prison. Prisoners also say that if they manage to go to the infirmary or the hospital they are subjected to strip search both when they are leaving and when they came back to prison. The right of the prisoners to recieve news is also prevented. They are not allowed to recieve books when the prison administration feels like it. They don't even respect the rules they make."

 

ENEMY LAW

 

Stating that the isolation in prisons started to be implemented more since the state of emergency was declared in 2016, Onaran said, "Every officer treats the prisoners as if they are the state themselves.When the prisoners go to the hospital, it is written in their files who they are and from which case they are on trial. They are treated as 'terrorists'. 

 

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES

 

Emphasizing that the prisoner stand firm against all kinds of rights violations such as oppression, torture and violence, Onaran said, “Despite all kinds of oppression, they never make any concessions on their thoughts or beliefs. It is our responsibility not to leave them alone there, it is everyone's responsibility."