Ayşe Barım, a well-known manager of Turkish television stars, said in an open letter from prison that since her arrest in January, she has lost 30 kilograms and fainted six times from worsening heart and brain conditions and urged that she be tried without being held in pretrial detention, Turkish media reported.
Barım, who faces up to 30 years in prison on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government” due to her alleged role in the anti-government Gezi Park protests in 2013, has been held at Silivri Prison in İstanbul since her arrest in January.
“I am living under the constant risk of sudden death,” Barım wrote in her letter. “My only request is that my right to life be protected.”
Cemil Çiçek, a lawyer who has been vocal on rights cases in Turkey, shared Barım’s letter on X, writing that she should be released immediately.
Barım’s health has sharply deteriorated since her arrest. Following a referral from the court, a medical board at a state hospital in İstanbul issued a report on July 2 detailing multiple critical conditions.
The doctors said Barım has serious heart disease that causes the heart muscle to thicken and beat irregularly as well as leaky heart valves that prevent normal blood flow. She urgently needs a pacemaker, the report said, warning that she could suffer sudden cardiac arrest at any time without it.
The report also found a new brain aneurysm — a dangerous ballooning of an artery — near the site of two previous surgical stents. Because of its position, doctors cannot treat it for now and say it could rupture, leading to a brain hemorrhage, paralysis or death.
According to a previous petition filed with the court, Barım had fainted multiple times in the previous month and was once found unresponsive on the ground by prison guards. In another incident the lack of immediate medical intervention could have been fatal, her lawyers said. The medical report stressed that prison facilities cannot provide adequate or timely treatment in such emergencies.
Barım’s attorneys also noted that cardiac surgery had been scheduled before her arrest but could not be performed after she was taken into custody. The doctors warned that without the implantation of a pacemaker, her life could end at any moment.
In a separate medical opinion prepared at the request of Barım’s lawyer, the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) convened a panel of eight specialists to assess whether her health allowed her to remain in prison.
The TTB is a national professional body representing physicians and advocating for medical ethics, improved public health and patients’ rights.
The TTB report concluded that Barım suffers from multiple severe illnesses, including a brain aneurysm, narrowing and valve failure in the heart’s left ventricle due to a heart muscle disorder and sleep apnea. Each condition independently poses a risk of sudden death or permanent disability, the panel said. Anxiety and panic attacks, which have worsened in prison, further complicate her ability to use the medical devices necessary for her care, potentially triggering a fatal health crisis.
“Prison conditions are accelerating the deterioration of these illnesses,” the report stated, warning that without release Barım could be denied adequate medical care, a violation of her rights under Turkish and international law. The TTB referenced the United Nations’ Istanbul Protocol, the Mandela Rules and rulings from the European Court of Human Rights, which set minimum standards for the treatment of prisoners.
Her lawyers previously applied for Barım’s release on May 20 and June 11, but the court rejected those requests. Following a fainting episode on June 5, the new medical report was submitted to support another application for release.
Her defense team urged the court to rule on Barım’s release without waiting for the Council of Forensic Medicine’s (ATK) opinion, arguing that otherwise the prison system would bear responsibility for any fatal consequences.
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.
Barım was arrested in January on allegations dating to 2013, when protests erupted over the government’s urbanization plans for Gezi Park in İstanbul, sparking a wave of demonstrations against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was prime minister at the time.
Prosecutors accused her of “pushing” her actors to take part in the anti-government demonstrations, a claim she denies.
A 171-page indictment accusing her of “attempting to overthrow the government” was accepted by the İstanbul 26th High Criminal Court, which set the date for the first hearing of her trial on July 7.
Barım faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office claims Barım had extensive communications with high-profile figures convicted or accused in previous Gezi-related trials, including philanthropist Osman Kavala, film producer Çiğdem Mater Utku and exiled actor Memet Ali Alabora. Prosecutors allege she played a role in coordinating actors’ involvement in the protests.
The investigation into Barım came more than a decade after the Gezi Park protests. Turkish authorities have repeatedly revisited the demonstrations in legal proceedings, targeting activists, opposition figures and businesspeople.
Her case has sparked widespread criticism, with opposition politicians and human rights advocates arguing that it reflects a broader crackdown on dissent and government control over the entertainment sector.
Barım has denied all the allegations against her.
“If I die in prison despite the medical evidence, who will be responsible?” Barım asked in her letter.
