DECLARATION ON THE OPERATION ON HUNGER STRIKERS 

The assessment and demands of the Human Rights Association of Turkey on 
the operations on hunger strikers in prisons is as follows: 

1. HRA qualifies these operations as a planned mass murder. As a result 
of the operation, at least 20 hunger strikers and 2 gendarme officers 
have been killed, and hundreds of prisoners have been injured. The 
Interior Ministry stated that the operation was planned a year ago. 
2. HRA firmly declares that the conditions surrounding the operation, 
the way that the operation is carried out, and the attacks on the NGOs 
and the relatives of the prisoners suggest state terrorism. 
3. HRA holds strongly the opinion that the costs of the government’s 
insistence on F-Type prisons stems not from the position of the hunger 
strikers but from the National Security Council’s and the government’s 
approach to the law enforcement system, who argue that the problem in 
prisons is to establish the “state’s authority in prisons”. However, 
what they call “the state authority” cannot be established under 
conditions of gross human rights violations and totalitarian measures. 
4. We also accuse the government for disinformation both internally and 
internationally on many accounts. For instance, the government claims 
that the F-Type prisons were supported by international NGOs and by the 
CPT to suggest that there could be no changes in the construction; and 
that the prisoners and national NGOs opposing the isolation policies in 
fact want to keep the prison system as it is to prevent any constructive 
dialogue. 
5. HRA cannot endorse the claim that the prisoners blocked the 
negotiations as the point where the dialogue stopped was when the 
prisoners wanted assurance against isolation. At that point, no NGO or 
professional organisation could give assurance as the government has not 
kept its promises on any subject related to human rights. More 
specificly, whereas the 1996 death fast ended on the basis of assurances 
on the demands of the prisons including most importantly proper medical 
treatment of hunger strikers and trial of the officers perpetrating the 
murders in previous operations in prisons, these promises were not kept, 
and those responsible for further murders in operations in prisons have 
not yet appeared before the courts. 
6. HRA qualifies the F-type prisons as isolation prisons and as utterly 
contradictory to human rights standards, and made various negotiations 
with the authorities for revisions. However, the authorities reject any 
revision, arguing that the National Security Council was vehemently 
supporting this type of prisons. 
7. At the moment, the prisoners have been transferred to the F-type 
prisons, thereby breaking the promise given by the Justice Minister on 
December 9 and forcing more prisoners into hunger strike. Furthermore, 
there is no way for the families, lawyers and human rights activists to 
verify the situation of the prisoners from stormed prisons, and to visit 
the prisoners at hospitals. The lawyers and families are not allowed to 
monitor the autopsy procedures. 
8. At this point, the HRA declares that they cannot have any hopes on 
positive steps on human rights by the government, that they have no 
thrust in the government, that thus they cannot continue their 
communication with the government on any point anymore. 
9. We call on the intergovernmental bodies, most importantly the CPT, to 
conduct a visit to Turkey immediately. 
10. We call on the UN Commission on Human Rights to take human rights 
problems in Turkish prisons in its agenda, and make a resolution on the 
issue. 
11. We call on the UN Rapporteurs on Torture and on Extrajudicial 
Executions to communicate with the Turkish government with a view to 
hold a mission on prison operations. 
12. We call on the international human rights NGOs, including the 
Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the FIDH, to form a 
mission to collect information on spot and to mediate between the 
government and the civil society to stop more killings, to assure the 
families of their real situation, and to remind the government to 
implement their obligation to allow lawyers to see their clients and to 
monitor the autopsy procedures. 
We will submit the translation of our report of findings and 
observations on hunger strikes and operations soon.