Chronically ill and elderly prisoners expecting justice to be served

Şehmus Alpsoy, who has contracted cancer in prison, and his elderly father Mehmet Emin Alpsoy, who were imprisoned 21 years ago due to their Islamic identity as a result of the plotting of the FETO judges and the mentality of February 28 postmodern coup, are demanding justice from the authorities.

Reacting to the fact that Şehmus Alpsoy and his father Mehmet Emin Alpsoy (73) were excluded from the New prison release law, the Alpsoy family wants justice from the authorities, especially the President and the Minister of Justice.

Stating that her husband had colon cancer and therefore have undergone surgery several times Suat Alpsoy, the wife of Şehmus Alpsoy, said that her husband could not even go to hospital because of the Covid-19 pandemic and was almost left to die because of chronic diseases.

“My husband was unable to recover because the prison conditions were so bad”

Stating that she cannot understand why his wife was being held in prison despite having so many illnesses, she went on to say: “My wife have been undergoing cancer treatment for 3 years. He has so far had about 5 surgeries. We expected him to recover after the last surgery but he was unable to recover due to the very poor prison conditions. The living conditions are so bad. it's both colder than normal and there's no food or drink for patients. Even at the hospital, he didn't get a meal the patient could eat. When I objected, they said, ‘here is a prison hospital’.”

“Maybe he's living the last days of his life”

Noting that her husband’s recent CT scans turned out bad, Alpsoy said: “Despite my husband’s recent CT scans have turned out bad, it’s been 3 months and they haven't taken him to the hospital yet. A process that would normally take 2-3 days takes months in prison. Now there's a coronavirus pandemic, so you can't get an appointment from hospital. The last time I saw my husband, he said, 'I feel the mass has grown.' Therefore, he can't have a bowel movement. He's in a lot of pain and his back hurts. He is living with the colostomy bag constantly. Maybe he's having the last few days of his life, we don't know. Because he's already had a relapse. My husband is in the final stages of the disease.”

“When I take care of my disabled son, my husband is getting into a difficult situation. When I take care of my sick husband, my son is getting into a difficult situation”

Stating that she was caring for his mentally disabled son, 25, Alpsoy said: “I chaperoned to my husband when he was admitted to hospital. This time my mentally retarded son is in trouble at home. My son is now so aggressive and angry that we can no longer contain him. When I take care of my disabled son, my husband is getting into a difficult situation. When I take care of my sick husband, my son is getting into a difficult situation.”

“My husband's been in prison for a quarter of a century, isn't that enough?”

Pointing out that after 90,000 prisoners will be released due to coronavirus pandemic in Turkey, she continued as follows: “We see that they are releasing everyone from prisons, but the victims of February 28 postmodern coup remain to stay in prison. I follow all the courts. They don't hand aggravated life sentences even to those who attempted a coup d'état. Most of them, except some, are not be handed aggravated life sentences, as if they were on a picnic rather than a coup. My wife did nothing but they handed him aggravated life and he's been in prison for 21 years. They let go of the mobsters, but good riddance, everybody protects their own man. Unfortunately, we Muslims can't protect each other. But now, so much for diplomacy. Even the deaf sultan has heard our voice but the authorities unfortunately don't want to hear our voice.

"For God's sake, let these men die in their homes"

Underlining that new amnesty law is far from meeting expectations, she said:” My husband is in the biggest risk group because he has cancer. My father-in-law is 75 years old and sick. He also is in the risk group. Both of them excluded from this amnesty law. What is this, if not cruelty? We had hope from this law. We were hoping justice would come to us. But unfortunately, Justice did not come. Finally, I call on the president, the Minister of Justice, to all the people, 'for the sake of Allah, let these men die in their homes’. We don’t say ‘let them live in their homes’, we say, ‘let them come and die in their homes2. I will not forgive those who persecute us in the presence of Allah. In the hereafter, both my children and I will have both hands on their necks. Because only God knows what we've been through for 21 years.”

“My son and husband aren’t in position to even take care of themselves”

Rabia Alpsoy, wife of Mehmet Emin Alpsoy and mother of Sehmus Alpsoy, said: “Both my son and my wife are sick. They phoned last week and said they were in a bad condition. They're not even in a position to take care of themselves. Şehmus phoned today, saying that he was in a bad condition. He was supposed to go to the hospital, but they didn't take him, or even didn’t get an appointment at hospital. They've been in prison for 21 years. My husband is over 70 now his hands are shaking because of old age. My husband can't take care of himself anymore. We are victims with them. Now we want their acquittal. The authorities have released all the thieves and all the prisoners from prison, but at the same time, they also should release my son and my husband. We ask the president to acquit my wife and son.”

“The state must be fair and treat everyone equally”

Speaking about the new amnesty law, Hasan Bozdaş, lawyer of Şehmus and Mehmet Emin Alpsoy, stated: “Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, a number of measures were taken and an amnesty law was introduced for some crimes. A limited number of crimes were covered by this amnesty law. Especially the crimes such as looting, theft, fraud, and gunshot wounds that disrupt the social order were eligible for early release. However, political prisoners weren’t among those considered for early release. Of course, these measures had to be taken. These were supposed to be applied equally and fairly to all prisoners. But this wasn't the case. As a rule of law, there should be no discrimination between crimes, especially for prisoners with severe illnesses and unable to take care of themselves. Prisoners who commit certain crimes, even if they are severely ill in prison and unable to take care of themselves, are currently unable to take advantage of some of the conveniences introduced by this amnesty law.

“My clients are currently under severe conditions in prison”

Underlining that everyone's right to life, including prisoners, is a priority right, whatever the obstacles to it are against human rights, Bozdaş went on to say: “My clients, Şehmus Alpsoy and Mehmet Emin Alpsoy, are currently under severe conditions in prison. Sehmus Alpsoy is a stage III colon cancer patient. Therefore, he cannot take care of himself alone in harsh prison conditions. Mehmet Emin Alpsoy struggles with some diseases such as parkinson's, osteoporosis and hepatitis. He is unable to take care of himself due to his old age as well as these diseases. Both of my clients were excluded from early release as well as other conveniences introduced by this amnesty law. In addition, they cannot benefit from the existing health services very well due to the measures taken within the scope of fighting coronavirus.”

“Legal steps should be taken for sick prisoners without discrimination of crime”

Bozdaş concluded as follows: “I think that no matter what crime has been committed, all patient and elderly inmates in prisons who are unable to take care of themselves should not be subjected to any more torture, especially in these days when the fight against of coronavirus pandemic is continuing with difficulty. Therefore, legal steps should be taken for sick prisoners without discrimination of crimes. I hope a legal arrangement is made in this context.” (ILKHA)