Turkish satirical magazine LeMan featured the situation facing seriously ill prisoners in Turkey on its front cover. The magazine reported that there are 1,605 sick prisoners in Turkey, 604 of whom are seriously ill.

Two prison guards coming to take the body of a dead inmate in prison are pictured on the cover image of the magazine.

“What else is hell but a world that has lost its conscience!,” was the headline of LeMan.

In a cartoon, one of the guards entering the prison cell is pictured saying: “Shall we wait more, maybe he is not dead, this sick prisoner” to the other guard, whereas the response of the other guard is: “I think he is dead, lets put him on the stretcher.”

At the bottom of the cartoon, it was also stated that 59 sick prisoners have died in prisons since the beginning of 2020 in Turkey. In addition, on the front cover of LeMan, the following was stated: “Human Rights Organisation (IHD) co-chair, attorney Eren Keskin, stated that ‘1,605 sick detainees, 604 of whom were seriously ill, are living abandoned to their fate by the Forensic Medicine Institute (ATK) reports.'”

The Human Rights Association (IHD) report states that 27 sick prisoners died in prisons in 2020. In the first three months of 2021 alone, 13 sick prisoners lost their lives behind bars and one seriously ill detainee died in hospital shortly after his release. There are currently 1,605 sick prisoners behind bars, 604 of whom are reportedly seriously ill. The Forensic Medicine Institutes (ATK) in Turkey are at the centre of the legal mechanisms that decide upon the release or non-release of sick prisoners in Turkey. However, various human rights defenders have been repeatedly stating that the ATK reports are biased and the institution makes decisions based upon orders by the government.