ADANA- Stating that prisons have more prisoners than their capacity, İHD Central Prison Commission Spokesman İlhan Öngör said that the measures of the Ministry of Justice are not enough to protect prisoners, demanding that the executions of the prison sentence of severely ill prisoners to be postponed.
The measures regarding Coronavirus to be taken in prisons and judicial mechanisms by Justice Minister Abdülhamit Gül are seen to be lacking. Stating that postponing the prison visits for 2 weeks in open and closed prisons is not the solution, human rights organizations demand the detainees to be released. "The measures of the Ministry of Justice are not enough to protect detainees" said Lawyer İlhan Öngör, spokesperson for the Central Prison Commission of the Human Rights Association (İHD) reminding that there are many guardians in the prisons outside the detainees. and these officers remain in the same physical environment with detainees. "For this reason, there is a risky situation. First of all, the guardians should be scanned on a daily basis. All wards and non-ward areas should be disinfected on a daily basis as well. Especially sick prisoners, whom we as İHD have brought to the agenda for such a long time, are the most risky group. Therefore, the execution of the prison sentence of seriously ill prisoners should be postponed. Seriously ill prisoners are not currently able to benefit their right for adequate health."
‘FREE CLEANING MATERIAL SHOULD BE PROVIDED'
Pointing out that there are more than 800 mothers with babies in prisons, Öngör emphasized that the conditions for children to live healthy in a hygienic environment should be provided. Emphasizing the importance of informing the detainees about the Coronavirus and of medical officers and doctors to be set ready in prisons, Öngör said the following: "While the capacity of the prisons of Turkey is 230 thousand, there are over 280 thousands of detainees kept in prisons. This excess capacity causes us to worry that the virus may spread more."
Noting that the ban of prison visits is a violation of rights, Öngör demanded that the authorities should provide a suitable physical environment for the visits, such as all the detainees and their families being supplied masks and gloves.
Öngör stated that the detainees are not able to buy hygiene materials due to financial difficulties and stated that the detainees should be given urgently free cleaning materials.
MA/ Hamdullah Kesen