MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Mêrdin- 44 prisoners lost their lives in Turkey’s prisons in the last nine months. Some prisoners lost their lives because they were denied access to treatment but most of them died under suspicious circumstances. The real reasons of these deaths, called as “suicide” prison administrations, have not been revealed yet, the families of prisoners point out that their relatives did not commit suicide but they were killed.

Speaking about the increase in deaths in prisons, Halime Gezer, mother of Garibe Gezer, said, “If the perpetrators of my daughter had been found, no prisoners would have died.” Garibe Gezer were found dead in the Kandıra No. 1 F Type High Security Prison on December 9, 2021 after being tortured and sexually assaulted. While the prison administration claims that she committed “suicide”, no one believes that she committed suicide because she was kept in the isolation cell.

No progress in the investigation

There is no progress in the investigation launched into her death. A confidentiality order has been issued on file and even lawyers are not given any information about the investigation. The file about the torture and rape against Garibe Gezer is still kept waiting at the Turkey’s Constitutional Court (AYM).

“Dozens of prisoners were killed after my daughter”

Stating that dozens of prisoners lost their lives in prisons, Halime Gezer pointed out that the prisoners did not committed suicide but they were killed. “They killed my daughter a year ago. Then, they started killing other prisoners. Until now, they have killed more than 40 prisoners in prisons. They do not allow the families of prisoners to receive condolences; the families are not allowed to even wash their bodies,” Halime Gezer told us.

“They say prisoners are sick and killed them”

Halime Gezer continued to speak by saying, “They have killed more than 40 prisoners after my Garibe. They claim, ‘they were sick or killed themselves’. My daughter was not sick and was kept in prison. After killing my daughter, they called me and said, ‘She killed herself’. How could she kill herself? She was kept in an isolation cell. She could not kill herself in the isolation cell. I saw her in my dream. In my dream, I asked her, ‘How are you, my daughter? Why did you not comb your hair?’ She answered me by saying, ‘Mother, I was going to wake up in the morning and comb my hair, but they came and killed me.’ My daughter was killed, she did not kill herself.”

“We will follow up this case”

Stating that she will follow up the murder case of her daughter, Halime Gezer said, “We will follow up this case to the end. I will find the killers of my daughter. I will apply to the ECHR; if they want, they will find the killers of prisoners. Many mothers suffer great hardship. My daughter was dragged on the ground; she was naked and then kept in an isolation cell. They left the window open and kept my daughter in the cell for four hours. This is unacceptable.”

“They took my Garibe’s voice from me”

Emphasizing that the state arrests their children and kills them in prison, Halime Gezer said, “Prosecutors, judges, everyone is each other's friends, they all support each other. They kill us. My daughter was in prison but at least I could hear her voice. But they took my Garibe’s voice from me. They killed her. Prisoners are killed and tortured.”