21 Jan, 2002
From Solidarity Committee with Political Prisoners in Turkey (DETUDAK)
The introduction of the isolation or ‘F-type’ cells by the state in Turkey has aroused a large public outcry inside and outside the country. The protests against the plans for the use of isolation cells began in early summer of 2000, following several murderous attacks by police and the paramilitary against the prisoners. In the Ulucanlar prison massacre in September 26, 1999, the police savagely murdered at least 11 political prisoners and tens of others were badly injured. These unjustifiable and brutal attacks were engineered by the fascist state to prepare the grounds for the introduction of the F-type isolation prisons as part of a strategy to deal with the resistance of political prisoners to any forms of pressure to submit to the will of the state.
The single cell prisons banned by numerous international conventions and recognised by all human rights organisations and institutions as one of the worst forms of torture and human rights violations, are used by all fascist and reactionary regimes particularly against progressive, democratic and revolutionary minded political prisoners. This type of imprisonment is aimed at isolating the person from other prisoners in order to dehumanise and violate the dignity and integrity of the political prisoner by physical and psychological torture. The aim is to defeat the radical and the progressive sections of society and stop them from voicing any challenge to the system. This ultimately is an attack against the whole society and not only the political prisoners.
In continuation of the general resistance to the introduction of the F-type prison cell system over 15 months ago, in October 2000, over one thousand political prisoners commenced an unlimited hunger strike to protest against this inhuman policy of the Turkish state. The hunger strike, which was soon turned into a death fast by some of the prisoners, is still continuing to be waged as an ultimate resistance against these policies of the fascist state. Since the hunger strike began, 85 people have died as a consequence of the attempts of the state to introduce the F-type isolation cells. After over 15 months of resistance many of the prisoners participating in the hunger strike are now severely ill or handicapped. But despite being fatally ill they continue their protest and resistance.
In 19-22 December 2000, in a simultaneous operation in 20 prisons throughout Turkey, the state despatching its army of thugs and the paramilitary forces and using bulldozers, deploying incendiary devices, nerve gas and bombs to brake down the resistance, killed 32 prisoners. The regime’s intension was to put an end to the protest and the resistance of political prisoners by forcibly removing and transferring them to specially built F-type prisons. However, even in the f-type isolation cells the huger strike and the resistance has continued till today. This is the clearest expression of the failure of the state in its plans to destroy and crush this heroic resistance.
The resistance in prisons continues today as Turkey is suffering its worst economic and social crisis. While the fascist state slavishly follows the dictates of the World Bank and the IMF, inflation and unemployment are soaring. Poverty and hunger is widespread and the economy of the country is on the brink of collapse. The whole country and its economy have been put up for auction as many sections of the industry and services have been privatised for this purpose. Politically, repression has reached untold levels and all sections of society are subjected to the worst state terror, violence and intimidation. All that remains of the democratic rights are mere empty words.
Repression is a prerequisite of exploitation. Exploitation is the source of all the wealth and profits amassed by the world’s biggest monopolies and corporations whose only interest lie in driving the world towards maximising their profits. This can is only be achieved by increased repression. The most important driving force behind the imposition of the isolation prisons in Turkey is the need of the international monopolies and cartels to break down the mounting resistance and opposition to their agenda, and that is to maximise the exploitation of the people and their habitat. Thus they have to silence anyone opposing them not only in Turkey but also throughout the world.
For this reason the struggle and the resistance of the political prisoners in Turkey has become the symbol of resistance of society at large against the rule of the imperialist powers, their various agencies such as the IMF and World Bank and the puppet regime in power in Turkey. The resistance of political prisoners in Turkey as with the struggle of all political prisoners across the world is a just struggle and is another manifestation of the struggle of the oppressed people every where.
We call on all democratic and freedom loving people, organisations and institutions to join us in support of the struggle of the political prisoners in Turkey against the fascist state in power and to defend the aspirations of the oppressed peoples of Turkey to live in a democratic and just society free of torture, intimidation and the rule of imperialism, fascism and reaction.
Solidarity Committee with Political Prisoners in Turkey (DETUDAK)
January 2002