A Turkish prison has banned an activist jailed in a crackdown ahead of July’s NATO summit in Ankara from family visits for six months, the latest restriction reported among members of a left-wing youth group held since the operations, the Sendika.Org news website reported.
Berkay Ustabaş, an advisory board member of the Revolutionary Youth Associations (DGD) held in pretrial detention at Marmara Prison in İstanbul since July 8, received the ban after covering cameras that monitor his cell around the clock, including how often he uses of the toilet and bathroom.
The Progressive Lawyers Association (ÇHD) said other DGD members jailed in the same operations have also faced visitation restrictions. Although prisoners are allowed to designate three people other than relatives for visits, the association said prison authorities have yet to approve the activists’ designated visitors despite months of waiting, citing continuing background checks.
Ustabaş was among more than 100 DGD members detained in a series of police operations across Turkey ahead of the NATO summit held in Ankara on July 7 and 8. He was taken into custody on July 5 and jailed pending trial three days later.
Fifty-four DGD members were jailed pending trial following the operations, while 14 were subsequently released at their first hearings.
Ustabaş was previously jailed in January 2018 and held for about a year in a case involving his participation in the 2014 funeral of Berkin Elvan, a teenager who died after being struck by a police tear gas canister during the 2013 Gezi Park protests. He was acquitted of membership in a terrorist organization in April 2019 but sentenced to five months in prison for violating the law on demonstrations.
