Turkish high court awards damages after prisoner’s appeal on inhumane prison conditions

Turkey's highest appeals court has awarded prisoner Hakan Buzhane 100,000 liras (2,900 dollars) for moral injury, accepting his complaint regarding the inhumane living conditions due to overcrowding at Istanbul's Silivri Prison.

Thursday November 14 2024 11:28 pm

Duvar English

Turkey’s high appellate court, the Constitutional Court (AYM) issued a precedent-setting decision on prison conditions.

A prisoner named Hakan Buzhane, who was transferred to Istanbul’s Silivri Prison in 2015 and remained there until 2019, took the prison conditions to court, according to information in the court's reasoned decision.

Buzhane filed a complaint with the court, citing grievances about “being held in an overcrowded cell, insufficient food, and inadequate access to healthcare services.”

The prisoner stated that due to the severe overcrowding in the institution, he faced difficulties maintaining his daily life and exercising his rights. He highlighted that they were 48 people in a cell designed for 21, and the use of bathrooms and toilets, access to hot water, and hygiene conditions were insufficient due to the crowding.

He also noted challenges in storing personal belongings, meeting kitchen needs, accessing common areas, making use of free time, benefiting from social and cultural opportunities, seeing visitors, accessing healthcare, and getting fresh air.

Buzhane requested that the unsuitable conditions be identified and improved to comply with the constitution and laws, noting that despite the increase in prisoner numbers, the number of institution personnel, doctors, psychologists, dentists, etc., had not increased proportionately.

The local execution court dismissed his complaint of mistreatment due to overcrowding without review.

The court based its decision on the grounds that the applicant’s demands pertained to the administrative operations of the prison, which fell outside the court’s jurisdiction.

With dissenting votes from two judges, the Constitutional Court ruled that the applicant's rights to effective remedy, guaranteed under Article 40 of the constitution, were violated in connection with the prohibition against ill-treatment, guaranteed under Article 17.

The high court awarded the applicant 100,000 Turkish liras (2,900 dollars) in moral injury.