COLEMÊRG - Mehmet Selim Soydan, father of Reber Soydan, who died suspiciously in prison, said: “I do not believe that my son committed suicide. The incident must be clarified."

 

Reber Soydan, who was arrested on October 23, 2022 after being detained in the Gever (Yüksekova) district of Colemêrg and sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment and 53 years in prison for "disrupting the unity and integrity of the country", died under suspicious circumstances on May 11. The body of Soydan, who died suspiciously in Van F Type High Security Prison, was buried in his hometown on May 12. The prison administration claimed that Soydan committed suicide.

 

FATHER SOYDAN: THERE WAS NO PROBLEM

 

Speaking about the incident, Soydan's father, Mehmet Selim Soydan, said that he did not believe the suicide claim. Father Soydan stated that his son was in high spirits and joy during every phone call and prison visit, and noted that there were no problems during the detention period. Soydan said: "He called me on the phone at around 13.40 pm on May 11. We chatted with my son for at least 9 minutes. He also talked to his brothers, he was in a good mood. During the conversation, he said that he had submitted a petition to the prison directorate to be transferred to a single ward. He also asked for money to buy a television. I asked him why he was moving to the single ward and whether he had any problems with his friends in his room. He said there was no problem and he would pass voluntarily."

 

'I DO NOT BELIEVE HE COMMITTED SUICIDE'

 

Stating that the prison administration called him at 00.43 am on May 12, "The Prison Director said, 'Your son strangled himself.' I was shocked by these words and hung up the phone without knowing what to say. I don't believe my son committed suicide. The prison administration needs to reveal everything" father Soydan said. 

 

Stating that he was not allowed to wash the body in Wan after taking it, Soydan said, "They did not allow it when we brought it to Gever. We washed my son's body in our own home. Why did they not allow us to wash it in the mosque and the hospital? This is not acceptable."

 

Expressing that their only demand is for the facts to be revealed, father Soydan said: "Whoever did it must be revealed. How did my son die? Did he commit suicide or did someone else do it? The answers to these questions need to be revealed one by one."