The planned release of Kurdish journalist Ali Barış Kurt has been postponed by six months by the prison administration. The supervisory and monitoring committee responsible for Istanbul’s Maltepe Prison justified the decision by stating that Kurt showed no remorse and could “continue to pose a security risk.”
Kurt was imprisoned in February after the Supreme Court of Appeals upheld a two-year and four-month prison sentence against him. He was accused of “propaganda for a terrorist organization” through journalistic articles and social media posts.
In a statement released by his family, Kurt sharply criticized the prison administration’s decision. “Although I have not received a single disciplinary penalty, my request for supervised release was denied on the grounds that I am not ‘remorseful’ and pose a danger to others,” the journalist explained. He also emphasized: “Under all circumstances, we will continue to stand up for journalism and the truth.”
Since the introduction of a legislative amendment at the end of 2020, decisions on conditional releases are subject to the assessment of so-called administrative and observation commissions. These committees, which are made up of prison staff, can block the release of political prisoners on the basis of subjective assessments—even in the presence of positive expert opinions—and thus assume serious legal powers.
Human rights organizations criticize these committees for effectively acting as substitute courts by evaluating prisoners on the basis of their political convictions or their “lack of remorse.” The commissions use vague, ideologically biased criteria such as “lack of social adjustment” or “failure to distance themselves” from their political ideology to block releases. Even seriously ill prisoners and long-term prisoners who have been incarcerated for over 30 years are affected by this practice.