Turkish human rights organizations are calling for an independent investigation into the death of a transgender prisoner at a women’s prison near Ankara, saying the circumstances surrounding the case raise serious concerns, Turkish media reported.
According to the Bianet news website, in coordinated press statements delivered outside Human Rights Association (İHD) branch offices, rights groups gathered in İstanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Diyarbakir, Mersin and Aydin to demand accountability and changes to detention practices affecting transgender prisoners.
The prisoner, identified as Poyraz, a transgender inmate at Sincan Women’s Prison, was found dead in his cell on December 1.
According to accounts cited by KaosGL.org, an LGBT rights outlet, other transgender prisoners and visiting lawyers said four transgender inmates were collectively sent for psychiatric evaluation shortly before the incident, after which Poyraz was put in their shared cell. When the prisoners returned, they said they found Poyraz hanging from a rope.
They also said medical staff arrived after a prolonged delay and that prosecutors and crime scene investigators did not enter the prison until two days later. Witness statements were not taken, according to the accounts.
The groups further cited claims that the rope allegedly used was not previously present in the cell, that Poyraz’s head had been shaved and that he had recently lost a significant amount of weight, details they say cast doubt on treating the death as a suicide.
Sevda Karaca, a lawmaker from the opposition Labor Party (EMEP), raised the case in parliament on December 12, calling for clarification over the handling of the death and conditions faced by transgender prisoners.
Turkish authorities have not publicly released detailed findings related to the case.
