A leading Turkish human rights group is demanding urgent reforms to the country’s medical parole laws to allow the release of hundreds of seriously ill prisoners, warning that current rules put their lives at risk, the Mezopotamya news agency reported.
The Human Rights Association (İHD) called for Turkey to remove vague “national security” restrictions and ease the strict requirements that prevent sick inmates from being granted parole.
Jiyan Tosun, head of the İHD’s İstanbul branch, said the existing law allows authorities to deny release if a prisoner is labeled a “threat to national security,” even when suffering from serious illness. She argued that the rule is overly broad and fails to differentiate between prisoners’ medical conditions.
Tosun also warned that Turkey’s framework allows inmates to be denied release if the state-run Council of Forensic Medicine (ATK) issues a report concluding they can remain incarcerated despite their illness.
The ATK frequently comes under criticism over its questionable reports that find ailing inmates fit to remain in prison. Rights advocates slam the agency over its lack of independence from political influence and its role in compounding the persecution of political prisoners.
“If these two obstacles were removed and reports from state or university hospitals were accepted, many prisoners could be released,” Tosun said. She argued that existing rules on so-called “general security threats” should be revised to prevent them from blocking parole for the seriously ill.
According to İHD data, at least 1,412 prisoners in Turkey suffer from chronic or severe illness, including 161 women and 1,251 men. Among them, 335 are classified as seriously ill, with 230 unable to care for themselves and 105 requiring continuous assistance to survive.
Tosun described conditions that worsen prisoners’ health, including interrupted medical treatment, physical abuse during transfers, lack of hospital referrals and poor nutrition. She also said many inmates are forced to undergo medical examinations while handcuffed, even during dental procedures or surgeries.
“This does not align with human dignity,” Tosun said, noting that her group receives frequent complaints on the issue.
A separate report by the Medical and Law Workers’ Federation (MED TUHAD-FED) and the Lawyers for Freedom Association (ÖHD) recently documented 3,500 health-related appeals from 115 prisons, with 631 inmates described as struggling to survive.
Tosun said some inmates are freed only when they are near death. “If they were released earlier, they might receive proper treatment and live,” she said. “Instead, people are released one or two weeks before they die.”
She noted that the İHD continues its efforts, publishing weekly statements, preparing reports and sharing findings with the Ministry of Justice. “Sometimes we see positive results, like prisoners finally receiving treatment,” she said.
One case Tosun cited was that of Fatma Tokmak, a seriously ill female prisoner under her legal representation. Tokmak, she said, can no longer walk or sleep and avoids visitors because the prison elevator is broken and she cannot manage the stairs.
“We applied for her release, but nothing has happened so far,” Tosun said, adding that surgery for Tokmak has also been delayed.
Turkish authorities have frequently been criticized for their systematic disregard of the health needs of prisoners. Every year rights groups report the death of dozens of sick prisoners, either while behind bars or shortly after their release, which often comes at the end-stage of their illness. Turkey recorded over 700 deaths in prison in 2024, according to data from the Ministry of Justice shared in response to a parliamentary inquiry.
