Deputy Group Chairs of the DEM Party met with Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç on 24 June to highlight serious concerns around prison conditions in Turkey, particularly the neglect of sick and political prisoners in the country’s overcrowded detention system.
Deputy Group Chairs of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party, Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit and Sezai Temelli, met with Turkish Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç on 24 June to discuss the state of the prison system in Turkey. The meeting focused on what the party described as “rights violations” affecting both sick prisoners and the general prison population.
The DEM Party delegation stressed the growing humanitarian crisis caused by overcrowding and medical neglect in Turkish prisons, where approximately 350,000 people are currently detained — far above capacity.
The representatives urged Minister Tunç to prioritise the release of critically ill inmates, many of whom are political prisoners, and to enact broader reforms to ensure prisoners’ rights are respected across the system.
According to party officials, Minister Tunç responded positively to the proposals and pledged to review ongoing practices in prisons and address systemic failures.
The DEM Party has made prison reform one of its key political demands, citing international human rights obligations and domestic legal standards that are often violated in practice. The treatment of sick prisoners has been a longstanding issue in Turkey, with repeated appeals from legal and medical groups as well as international observers.