Turkey fined 54,000 euros for use of force against inmates in 2000

STRASBOURG

AFP Photo



The former inmates of Bayrampaşa Prison applied to the court stating that they had launched a hunger strike in October 2000 in protest at the severe reduction of cell sizes for prisoners.



The applicants complained about the use of force by the authorities during the lethal operation carried out to break the strike, which they considered excessive and disproportionate. They also complained that they had been subjected to an unjustified use of teargas.



The ECHR ruled that complainant Songül İnce, who was injured during the incidents, must be paid 15,000 euros, while 10,000 euros must be paid to Özgül Dede and Gülperi Özen, 8,000 euros to Aydan Odabaş and Fatma Güzel for non-pecuniary damage, and 3,000 euros to Songül İnce, Özgül Dede, Gülperi Özen, Aydan Odabaş and Fatma Güzel for costs and expenses.



On Dec. 18, 2000 the director of the Bayrampaşa Prison requested intervention by security forces, explaining that 45 prisoners on hunger strike were refusing to submit to medical examinations and treatment by the prison’s medical staff.



The security forces then staged a simultaneous intervention on Dec. 19, 2000, during which violent clashes broke out between security forces and prisoners.



During the operations, 12 prisoners were killed and 50 were injured, some with firearm wounds. After their removal from Bayrampaşa Prison, the injured applicants were taken to hospital while the others were transferred to different prisons.



Turkey has been fined 54,000 euros by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for “excessive and disproportionate use of force” by security forces against 18 inmates in an Istanbul prison in 2000.