Women are held in exclusively dedicated facilities and dedicated districts. Eight closed and five open prison facilities are exclusively reserved for women, while some prisons have specifically designated areas. Some establishments for women are overcrowded. In Tarsus prison in 2017, 70 women were held in a cell designed for 17, according to a report by Platform for Peace and Justice (PPJ).

The administration does not provide sanitary napkins. Some women with modest means cannot afford them.

Women have limited access to services and training in the facilities which also accommodate men.

The children have access to childcare centres inside the prisons. The mothers are not permitted to go into them, nor are they allowed to speak to any staff in charge of their children. Often other female prisoners do not want children to be present in their areas.

Minors are generally placed in common cells. They can be housed in:

• Education centres
• Prisons for minors, of which seven exist.
• Special areas inside adult prisons

There is only one prison for convicted girls.

Six children died in prison between November 2015 and June 2017: five in a fire and one from suicide.
The prison conditions are inadequate for children. The food rations are insufficient and of poor quality. The staff mistreats the children. Between November 2015 and June 2017, at least 133 children lodged 203 complaints including 111 for torture and ill-treatment. The majority of the complaints concern the prison for minors, Sincan.

Yes, foreign detainees can make phone calls in their country. International calls are very expensive. To call a Turkish number, one telephone card is usually needed while four are needed to phone abroad.

Close relatives of foreign prisoners are faced with a huge amount of red tape in order to obtain a visiting permit. Many official documents are required for this process and must be translated.

Some prisons accommodate a large number of foreigners. The type L prison in Maltepe houses 1,582, representing a total of 97 nationalities. Networks of mutual aid have been set up. The prison management has paid particular attention to granting certain rights, such as access to interpreters and maintaining links with family.

High extraditions costs are borne by the foreign prisoners. Delays for transferrals are often long.

The detention regime for prisoners differs according to whether their life sentence is simple or aggravated.

** The law states that life imprisonment inmates should have the same conditions of detention and the same rights as other prisoners: **

• The right to weekly visits from family members (up to third degree) and from three friends.
• The right to weekly telephone calls
• Access to fresh air during the day
• The opportunity to communicate with other prisoners

Prisoners serving an aggravated life sentence are under a specific detention regime which is more restrictive:

• The right to one-hour visits and fortnightly telephone calls. Family visits are allowed (up to second-degree family members only).¹
• One hour of access to fresh air
• Isolation in cells normally used for disciplinary purposes.
• Communication only possible with other prisoners serving an aggravated life sentence when on a walk or during activities. These are granted with good behaviour only.
• Work is strictly forbidden. Prisoners are financially dependent exclusively on their close relatives. Their isolation prevents the exchange of goods with other prisoners. Some prisoners try to sell items to the outside world that they have made themselves.

These conditions of confinement notably affect prisoner’s mental and physical health (see section “health”).

** Conditional release on parole is possible[parole] for the following:**

• prisoners age 24-30 sentenced to life imprisonment, depending on the crime committed.
• prisoners age 30+ sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment who have committed only one crime.
• prisoners age 36+ sentenced to life imprisonment for organized crime. A prisoner is released when the disciplinary and administrative council of the prison is in agreement. Parole may be delayed where disciplinary action is required.

The appeal proceedings are dealt with by the second criminal high court. The duration of these proceedings is often long and the number of prisoners awaiting a decision by the court of appeal (called hükümözlü) is high.

They are not provided with an adequate living environment or necessary adaptive care. At the Silivri prison, prescribed medical treatments are either denied or are provided weeks later.

Older prisoners will not get early release due to their age.