Sermin Demirdağ, imprisoned since 1993, completed the portion of her sentence required to be served in a closed prison on 7 March 2023. However, on 23 February, the Prison Administration and Observation Board claimed that Demirdağ didn’t meet the “good conduct” criteria, and postponed her release for three months. Following that decision, the board met again on 25 May, 17 August, 8 February 2024, 1 August, and 23 January2025, each time deciding to postpone her release, a total of six additional times. Demirdağ is held in Sincan Women’s Closed Prison in Ankara.
The most recent review of her case was held on 16 October. During the meeting, board members asked Sermin Demirdağ whether she “regretted” her political activities. It was reported that she was subjected to psychological pressure and reminded of the torture she had endured in the past.
Postponement without any disciplinary penalty
Although Demirdağ had not received any disciplinary punishment, the board’s decision stated that she had “participated in actions subject to disciplinary offenses,” and postponed her release for another year. Thus, her release has been blocked for the seventh time.
DEM Party: Enemy law is applied
DEM Party deputies called the decision arbitrary and filed an application to the Parliamentary Human Rights Investigation Commission, emphasizing that not only the decisions themselves but also the functioning of the prison boards should be investigated.
DEM Party Parliamentary Group Deputy Chair Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit stated that systematic human rights violations are taking place in prisons and said: “Prisons are one of Turkey’s bleeding wounds. The authorities seem to have sworn not to release political prisoners even when their sentences are complete. This is a clear reflection of the mentality of ‘enemy criminal law.’”
The Ministry of Justice must provide an explanation
Koçyiğit also called on the Turkish Ministry of Justice: “Who is blocking the freedom of Sermin Demirdağ and others like her? Is it the prosecutor, the board, the Directorate General of Prisons, or the Ministry itself? We are asking this question on behalf of the people of Turkey. If on the one hand there is talk of ‘peace,’ but on the other political prisoners continue to be held for years beyond their sentences, we will not remain silent.”