Rights Organizations: Arbitrary decisions prevent release of Sinjan Prison detainees

For more than three years, women held in the closed Sinjan Women’s Prison have been deprived of their right to conditional release, despite meeting the legal requirements. Lawyers and human rights organizations have stressed that the Administrative Oversight Board’s decisions are arbitrary and lack any clear standards.

According to lawyer Siban Gezerli, not a single detainee has been granted conditional release since January 2021, despite many having fulfilled the legal criteria.

She explained that “the amendments introduced to the enforcement law in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, brought fundamental changes to the criteria for assessing behavior, granting oversight boards broad powers to issue arbitrary decisions.”

Gezerli confirmed that at least 24 detainees have been denied release despite their eligibility, including 12 prisoners who remain behind bars. Among them are five women who have spent more than three decades in prison, most notably Sermine Demirdag, who is serving her 34th year of a life sentence.

She pointed out that prison evaluations are usually conducted every three, six, or nine months, yet some detainees have faced extensions of up to a full year, further complicating their legal and humanitarian conditions.

Gezerli emphasized that this measure is “arbitrary in nature,” noting that some other prisons, such as Bolu, have allowed conditional releases, while no such progress has been recorded in Sinjan.

She added: “The Administrative Oversight Board’s decisions lack standards and often repeat the same wording without considering individual cases or the detainees’ health conditions.”

Recently, the release of 12 detainees was blocked, five of whom have already spent 30 years in prison and are now entering their 33rd–34th years. In addition, many of these women have developed various illnesses while incarcerated.

Detainees Denied Conditional Release:

1. Nadime Yaklaf (30 years): Release postponed six times, next review in one year.

2. Sermine Demirdag (30 years): Release postponed six times.

3. Nuriye Adet (30 years): Release denied five times, next review in one year.

4. Gulshan Atet (30 years): Release postponed five times.

5. Hejran Benci (30 years): Release postponed four times.

6. Zuleyha Oztabashi: Release postponed three times.

7. Elif Ceten Bash: Release postponed twice.

8. Malika Gokso: Release postponed twice.

9. Esra Soyaktash: Release postponed twice.

10. Fatma Aslan: Release denied once.

11. Suheyla Tash: Release postponed once.

12. Amina Aysh: Release postponed once.

 A-H 

ANHA