Prisoners in the Sirnak Type T Prison met with their families in open visitation on September 6, but when arrestee Ayaz Avsar’s family made the victory sign by the end of the visitation, the guards battered Avsar, another prisoner named Osman Beytur and another prisoner whose identity is unknown in front of their families. Avsar’s mother Taybet Avsar protested the beating, as Beytur’s mother Hatice Beytur and the female relative of the unidentified prisoner were battered by the guards.

Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Sirnak MP Hasan Ozgunes spoke about the matter and said, “During the election process and in the last month, we were among the people and listened to fundamental societal issus and made analyses. One of the fundamental issues is the pressure and unlawfulness in Sirnak’s prisons, as we were told by both relatives of the arrestees and the released prisoners themselves. With the incident in the most recent open visitation and similar incidents happening in all prisons, putting this issue to the public agenda, creating awareness and calling the government to fulfill their duties and responsibilities became a necessity.”

“SOCIETY IS TRAPPED IN AN OPEN AIR PRISON”

HDP MP Ozgunes said the guards attacking the arrestees and families, battering and insulting them with the excuse that the families sang zilgits and showed victory signs goes against human rights, the law and before all, human values: “We cannot accept this unlawfulness that goes against the times and morality.”

Ozgunes said the prisons have become centers for torture, insults, mistreatment, intimidation and alienation for prisoners and added that the state wants to intimidate the peoples through unlawful arrests and that society has been trapped in a sort of open air prison.

Ozgunes said Sirnak was turned into a pilot ground: “People are arrested on political grounds and forced to independent wards in the prison. Those who uphold their political identity are exiled or subjected to various mistreatments and insults. So it is a humanitarian duty to stop the unlawful inhumane practices.”