ISTANBUL - Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu from HDP, who wants to urgently release the prisoners at risk of coronavirus, said, "I know that quarantine wards are now being built in Edirne and Silivri. News of the coronavirus leaping to prisons is coming."

 

The risk increases a little more every day in prisons, which are among the most vulnerable places against coronavirus. The People's Democratic Party (HDP) Kocaeli Deputy and Member of the Parliamentary Human Rights Investigation Commission Member Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, who stated that the news of the epidemic spread to the prisons, asked for the release of the detainees urgently.

 

'QUARANTINE WARDS ARE BEING BUILT'

 

Gergerlioğlu shared the information that the only measure the government is currently taking in prisons is a ban on closed visits, and that a quarantine ward is being established in prison. However, Gergerlioğlu stated that no information was given about the wards, and said that the new arrests will be quarantined for the first 14 days. Gergerlioğlu said: "I know that quarantine wards are now being built in Edirne and Silivri. There are reports of coronavirus leaping to prisons. However, we do not have a confirmed case. I learned from prison director that a prisoner was hospitalized at Kepsüt Prison. However, there was no explanation regarding the presence of coronavirus." 

 

Koronavirüsüne karşı korumasız olan yerlerin başında gelen cezaevlerinde risk her gün biraz daha artıyor. Salgının cezaevlerine yayıldığı haberlerin geldiğini kaydeden Halkların Demokratik Partisi (HDP) Kocaeli Milletvekili ve Meclis İnsan Haklarını İnceleme Komisyonu Üyesi Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, tutukluların acilen serbest bırakılmasını istedi. 

 

'AUTHORITIES THINK THAT THE VIRUS WILL BE GONE IN A FEW WEEKS'

 

Emphasizing that the quarantine wards created in prisons are not the solution, Gergerlioğlu said: "The government thinks this is a set back that will continue for a few weeks. We are face to face with a serious outbreak. They act on the worst pessimistic picture and scenario in prisons. The ban on closed visit is not a permanent solution. There are thousands of prisoners who need to be released immediately. However, the Ministry of Justice does not care."

 

'BAN ON VISITS INCREASES UNEASE'

 

Pointing out to the panic atmosphere in society, Gergerlioğlu said: "The biggest panic is the hundreds of thousands of families whose relatives are in prison. These people are concerned. The ban on visit increases their unease. Because they can not get any news from their relatives, children. The prisons in Turkey being in poor conditions even under normal circumstances, we don't know what will happen in these conditions.  Therefore, the people who are most anxious at the moment are the prisoners and their relatives."

 

Gergerlioğlu warned that if the coronavirus spreads in the prisons, it will be a nonrecoverable situation, said: "As a country, we cannot overcome this. Urgent interventions should be made as soon as possible and the release of the prisoners should be decided. Problems can occur at any time in prisons. Action must be taken before it's too late. Our Ministry of Justice knows that they did not take the necessary precautions. Both the people in prisons and those who wait for them outside are anxious about this. People are concerned for their lives and the lives of their loved ones. There is no official to understand this anxiety."