Date: Wed, 17 Jul 1996 18:07:07 -0500
From: dhenwood-AT-panix.com (Doug Henwood)
Subject: Report from Turkey


Zeynep sent me this, and I think she asked me to post it here, but the
English was a bit ambiguous. If I misread, apologies for the duplication.

Doug

----

TURKEY UPDATE --

As hunger-strikes - death-fasts- of some political prisoners reach day 57,
police repression increases. There are 161 prisoners whose death-fasts have
exceeded day 50, which is generally accepted as the date that irreversible
damage to the body begins. After day 60, chances of survival are very dim,
even if the hunger-strike ends. Two of the political prisoners can't even take

liquids anymore, which is again a sign of reaching the point-of-no-return.
Hundreds more are on the hunger-strike, ranging from a few days, to 57
days. Some relatives of prisoners and activists are also on a hunger-strike
outside. A death-fast is distinguished from a hunger-strike by the fact that a

hunger-strike may be a short-term protest, whereas a death-fast is until the
end, or until demands are met.

BACKGROUND

Turkish and Kurdish prisoners have a history of hunger-strikes. The first
wave was after the military coup of 1980. In fact, 14th of July was the
anniversary of the death on hunger-strike of four PKK (Kurdish Workers'
Party) prisoners of war, one of whom was a Turkish communist, Kemal Pir,
a founder of the PKK. Their deaths-in-struggle once again showed that
internationalism and unity-in-dignity belongs to the communists, and
separatism to the bourgeoisie.

The first wave, as incredible as it sounds was successful in many waves. The
prisoners won many rights, as the state backed down before the resolution of
the prisoners. The choice was either killing all of them, or allowing them
some of the demands.

There were further waves, and most were directed against the Eskisehir
prison. A prison that is built of single-person cells. The CIA and
phsychologists advised the state that as long as the collective will of the
prisoners could not be broken, the prisoners would not bend - even if killed.
The ward system currently in place allows political prisoners to put up a
collective resistance. Many come out of prisons having learned a new
language from a comrade who held lessons, having had many arguments
with comrades from their own organisation or other organisations regarding
problems of the struggle in Turkey & Kurdistan. Any attempt at separation is
met with fierce resistance.

There are two approaches to the question of political prisoners. One holds the

prisoners to be prisoners of class war. The other is the humane argument. For
the political prisoners, the fact that they are imprisoned is not the issue.
The political prisoners' collective coordination issues statements pointing
that fact that, yes they are, unfortunately, captured, and yes the moment they
are out, they will continue from where they've left off. The "rehabilitation"
attempt of the state is obviously not going anywhere. Also, there are
rehabilitators of a lesser kind, as some humane NGOs asked the prisoners to
drop the hunger-strike for humane reasons, as the deaths neared. The prisoners
collective coordination issued a statement which literally said, in a bit but
not much more polite manner, fuck-off.

THE PRISON OUTSIDE

Here are the numbers released by the Human Rights Association:

1996 - January, February, March;

-"Shoot-to-kill"(dubbed execution without trial) and death under custody: 39
- Wounded in police raids: 30
- Killed in shoot-outs: 205
- In "actions" aimed at civilians: 21 dead, 22 wounded
- Tortured and tortured claims: 168
- Detained: 5963
- Arrested: 544
- Number of villages and pastures "evacuated": 40
- Number of places bombed: 32
- Number of trade-unions and associations closed down: 23
- Number of trade-unions, associations and newspapers raided: 37
- Number of journalists detained : 102
- Number of publications banned: 38
-Jail and money fines for publication indictments: 779 years of jail, 3
billion 800 millon TL fines
-Jail and fines for publications, as adjudicated: 98 years, 2 billion 718
milion TL
-Number of prisoners of "thought" (meaning imprisoned for publishing): 369

1996 - May-June:
Shoot-to-kill executions: 9
Killed by the police bullets: 3
Killed because of not stopping when asked: 4
Killed by torture: 1
Killed in shoot-out: 1
Number of children detained: 100
Number of detained: 4471
Number of detained for political reasons: 4181
Missing: 8
Number of prisoners wounded in attacks in prisons: 19
Prison sentences for just publishing: 18 years 7 months
Number of magazines, papers and books banned: 29
Number of TV stations shut down: 4




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