Today is the third day in Basel of the vigil for political and ill prisoners in Turkey and Northern Kurdistan. The Swiss IHD representative Mine Nazari speaks of severe torture in Turkish prisons.
The Alliance of Democratic Forces in Europe (ADGB) has been holding a vigil for political prisoners in Turkey. The vigil began on Monday and will last until Friday, 7 January. The vigil is on its third day and has been organised with the slogan ‘We defend life’ and aims primarily at exposing the violation of rights of both prisoners and ill prisoners.
Six prisoners have died in suspicious circumstances in the past month in various prisons in Turkey. The participants carried pictures of these prisoners and demanded the release of former HDP politician Aysel Tuğluk, who suffers from dementia.
On behalf of the ADGB, the Swiss representative of the IHD human rights organization, Mine Nazari, spoke to ANF about the situation of those detained in Turkish prisons. Nazari spoke of serious legal violations, attacks, sexual violence, delay in release, delay in treatment of seriously ill prisoners and suspicious deaths in custody. "Today there are more than 1,000 ill prisoners in Turkish prisons, 600 of them seriously. Although the medical certificates and reports clearly demand it, these people are not being released. Instead, they are even deprived of their right to treatment and prisoners who are just about to see the final moments of their lives are prevented from saying goodbye to their families. We will continue to be the voice of the prisoners, making our calls for the release of ill prisoners and against these inhuman practices everywhere."
