Human rights violations against political prisoners held at Sincan No. 1 High-Security Prison are reported to have turned into systematic practices aimed at sabotaging the peace and resolution process currently being debated in public. Arbitrary disciplinary punishments, cell raids, bans on communication and visits, and the routine confiscation of books and publications have become normalized at the prison. It is stated that the administration’s unlawful conduct directly threatens not only the prisoners’ fundamental rights but also their physical safety.
Ahmet Sayak, the legal guardian of political prisoners Bager Sayak and Cihat Bekir, spoke to ANF about the severe and systematic rights violations at Sincan No. 1 High-Security Prison and said: “During my most recent phone call with Bager Sayak, he described the prison administration’s practices, which openly provoke the process and deliberately escalate tension. Continuous and arbitrary cell searches are being carried out, prisoners’ books are being confiscated, and even their most basic rights are being subjected to investigations without any justification. Visit and communication bans are being imposed systematically. These practices are not merely individual violations. This approach represents an attempt to undermine the historic process that is being discussed in Turkey today and that has found resonance within society.
Just as certain political actors outside are trying to sabotage the process, some prison administrators are acting with the same mindset inside the prisons.”
Prisoners act with restraint despite all violations
Ahmet Sayak said that political prisoners held in prisons are consciously maintaining a stance of non-action, considering the sensitivity of the process. He said, “Prisoners are showing strong will in order not to fall into provocation and not to harm the process. However, this restraint must not be understood as legitimizing repression and unlawful practices. We, as families, as act with the same sense of responsibility. Today, we are not raising our voices so that the process is not harmful, but this does not mean that our patience is unlimited. If unlawful practices continue in prisons, we will organize democratic and legitimate actions in front of the Ministry of Justice. We will not refrain from expanding the search for justice for our prisoners.”
Arbitrary disciplinary punishments imposed
Ahmet Sayak said that political prisoners being held at Sincan No. 1 High-Security Prison are being subjected to arbitrary disciplinary punishments. He also said, “Most recently, all objections filed against the disciplinary penalties imposed on 27 prisoners being held in the prison were rejected. Prisoners’ communication rights are being violated. Letters are censored, and replies are sent back. In October, a seven-page letter I sent to Bager Sayak was delivered with around twenty lines blacked out on the third page. Prisoners are given photocopies of letters, not the originals.”
Public must show sensitivity
Ahmet Sayak also called on MPs from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and relevant delegations to act over rights violations in prisons. He said, “An immediate visit to Sincan No. 1 High-Security Prison is necessary. The practices inside the prison must be examined on site, and the administration’s arbitrary conduct must be intervened against. These arbitrary practices are putting prisoners’ lives at risk. This is a crime against humanity. The public must be sensitive to this silent siege. At this point, not only prisoners’ rights but also their physical safety is under threat.”