Turkey extends coronavirus measures in prisons until May 15

ANKARA

Turkey’s Justice Ministry has decided to extend the measures it has taken in the country’s prisons, with respect to suggestions from the Coronavirus Science Board, until May 15.

In a Twitter post, the ministry said that the inmates’ visits, including the ones with their lawyers, have been postponed until May 15. But in special and mandatory circumstances, the arrestees and convicts will be able to conduct the visits if the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office decides so.

The attorneys will also have the chance to visit their clients in compulsory situations, under the condition of taking precautions such as wearing gloves and masks.

The ministry also said that all activities, which lead to the convicts’ contact with the outer world, such as social facilities or restaurants, have also been delayed.

The special permissions granted to convicts serving time in open prisons have been suspended until after May 15 as well.

Transfers from a penal institution to other institutions, excluding hospitals and matters that concern security, have been put off until the determined date.

Children, who are between the age of 0 and six, and who stays with their mothers who have been convicted, will not be able to go to their kindergartens until May 15. The children also will not be given to the other parents or their relatives outside the prison.

The use of family visit rooms in penal institutions and children education homes have also been postponed.