VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAK #1733/01 3381517
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 041517Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1393
INFO RHMCSUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J-3/J-5//
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEUITH/TLO ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/USDAO ANKARA TU

UNCLAS ANKARA 001733 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
JUSTICE FOR OPDAT 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PTER SNAR SOCI TU
SUBJECT:  TURKEY'S F-TYPE PRISONS: MOVING AWAY FROM "MIDNIGHT 
EXPRESS" 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  A recent Embassy visit to one of Turkey's 
high-security "F-type" prisons found a clean, modern facility 
housing inmates who appeared to be well-fed, well-behaved, and 
well-treated.  The prisoners, incarcerated for crimes related to 
terrorism, organized crime and drug trafficking, were afforded a 
number of educational and vocational training opportunities.  The 
prison regime was surprisingly lax by U.S. standards, but appeared 
to be effective and safe for prisoners and guards alike. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) U.S. Embassy representatives visited Ankara's Sincan prison 
complex, located approximately 20 kilometers west of central Ankara, 
on December 2, 2009, to gain a better understanding of the current 
state of Turkey's prisons, particularly the F-Type prison. The 
embassy group included the Resident Legal Advisor (RLA), the RLA's 
assistant, FBI Legal Attache, the Regional Counterterrorism 
Coordinator and a political officer.  A Ministry of Justice official 
from the Directorate General of Prisons, Orhan Arslan, served as our 
host. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Turkey's "F-Type" prisons are maximum security facilities 
used exclusively to house persons convicted of terrorism, organized 
crime, or leading drug trafficking gangs.  The F-type prison concept 
emerged in 2000, and the first such prisons opened in 2003.  There 
are currently thirteen F-type prisons in Turkey, the last opening in 
November 2009 on Imrali Island, which houses PKK terrorist leader 
Abudllah Ocalan and a handful of other prisoners.  (Note: The prison 
on Imrali was described as a "special" F-Type prison because it was 
created in order to comply with the European Commission Committee 
for the Prevention of Torture's recommendations to include other 
prisoners with Ocalan, who had been in solitary confinement since 
his imprisonment in 1999.  End note.) 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Sincan (pronounced "Sin-John") prison complex houses 
approximately 5,000 prisoners.  The complex has two F-type prisons, 
two L-type prisons (a secure prison for less serious offenders), one 
women's prison, one juvenile prison, and one "open prison," for the 
least serious offenders (those with sentences of less than two years 
or with less than two years remaining on a longer sentence).  Each 
of these prisons is a stand-alone building, and each (except for the 
open prison) has secure walls surrounded by barb-wire. The complex 
also has housing for the prison employees and their families, which 
is separated from the other prison buildings.  The exterior wall, 
consisting of a chain-link fence topped by razor wire, is guarded by 
the Jandarma (under Ministry of Interior authority), and the 
interior buildings are guarded by civil servants under the authority 
of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ).  The prison management personnel 
are MOJ civil servants.  The complex comprises approximately 617 
acres and is one of three of its type currently in Turkey (the other 
two are in the Istanbul area).  A total of 15 are planned.  Three 
are currently under construction in Elazig, Erzerum, and Diyarbakir. 
 The tender has been granted for one in Izmir as well. 
 
Sincan's F-type Prisons 
----------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Sincan F-type prison building we visited (one of two on 
the grounds) opened in 2003 and has a capacity of 368 prisoners.  It 
currently houses 357 prisoners.  The building is constructed in a 
large rectangular, with long interior corridors running in a 
crisscross pattern.  The prisoners we observed and met appeared 
well-fed, well-behaved, and well-treated.  The prisoners' movement 
is restricted; they are confined to their cells, and allowed to 
enter other areas only during specific times of day.  Prisoners are 
granted two hours of exercise each week - one hour inside and one 
hour outside -- in groups no larger than ten.  Prisoners wear 
regular street clothing, including tennis shoes with shoelaces, 
something not permitted in U.S. prisons due to the potential for use 
as a weapon or for suicides. They may not, however, wear clothing of 
the same color or style as prison guards and staff.  Inmates at this 
prison typically serve sentences of over ten years.  The number 
serving time for terror-related crimes has decreased, while those 
incarcerated for organized crime has gone up.  The facility also 
houses some incorrigible inmates from other prisons. 
 
¶6. (SBU) The prison cells themselves are perhaps the most remarkable 
aspect of the F-type prisons.  We observed two types of cells-a 
single-inmate cell and a three-inmate cell.  The three-inmate cell 
had two levels -- a downstairs living area and an upstairs sleeping 
area.  The lower level, which included a bathroom (with a door for 
 
privacy), had a sink, a kettle for brewing tea, pots, pans, 
silverware, and a small food pantry above the sink.  An interior 
door opened onto a small enclosed courtyard which the three 
cellmates used for limited recreation.  The cell was clean and well 
maintained.  Meals are delivered to the cells.  Remarkably, the cell 
we visited had three metal spoons, plastic forks, and a small metal 
knife.  (Note: This cutlery would never be permitted in U.S. prisons 
as each piece could easily be converted into a shank.)  This room 
also had a small sitting area with three plastic chairs, a plastic 
table, and a small television, provided by the inmates.  The 
upstairs room held three beds, with three small private lockers. 
The prisoners had prayer rugs, bed linen, and personal items -- one 
prisoner had a pile of books from the prison library.  The cell's 
upper level was not visible from the prison hallway, and there 
appeared to be no easy way to see inside this area.  A rooftop 
camera did not have visibility into the upstairs of the cell.  The 
officials explained that this was to respect the inmates' right to 
privacy.  In many ways, the living conditions were not dissimilar 
from a U.S. college student dorm room. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The F-type prisoners are afforded a wide range of 
vocational and educational opportunities.  We observed several 
prisoners making a traditional Turkish stringed instrument (the 
baglama), finely detailed wooden crafts, mosaic tile-work, and silk 
screen prints.  Prisoners also engage in painting, ceramics, and 
other artwork.  The artistic abilities of the prisoners were 
impressive.  Their artwork is sold to the public, with profits 
pumped back into buying additional materials for the arts and crafts 
programs.  The prison library, reported to be 10,000 books, appeared 
well-maintained.  Inmates order books from lists provided to each 
cell. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Inmates may also pursue an education and earn a high school 
or college diploma.  Their diplomas do not indicate they were earned 
in prison, so as to not damage future employment opportunities. 
Prisoners may also continue college programs interrupted by their 
incarceration by following coursework from the schools they left; 
they are even accompanied back to their schools by Jandarma to sit 
for final exams, which must be taken in person.  The prison includes 
a Muslim prayer room and an imam spends ten hours each week at the 
prison.  One guard commented there was also one "Catholic" prisoner 
for whom a Bible from the library was made available. 
 
¶9. (SBU) The prisoners may order items from the small prison store, 
which holds a wide array of snacks, food items, some clothing items, 
personal hygiene items, and small televisions.  Prisoners select 
items from a list in their cells and pay from a pre-paid account 
with a debit card.  Prisoners may also, on a weekly basis, receive 
items delivered from friends and family.  The items are examined for 
contraband in the inmate's presence prior to delivery.  Visitation 
is limited to one hour per week with family members in closed rooms, 
with an additional one hour per month with family in an open, 
caf-like visiting area.  Prisoners are limited to ten minutes per 
day of telephone calls to specific, pre-approved numbers. 
 
Open Prison 
----------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) During a brief visit to the open prison, we found it, too, 
was remarkable for the breadth of opportunities available to the 
prisoners.  This facility is more like a dormitory, with apparent 
complete freedom of movement within the building itself.  The one 
cell we observed housed eight prisoners.  It was clean and spare, 
with four bunk beds.  Each prisoner had a private locker.  The open 
prison also had classrooms, library, smoking room, prayer room, and 
hamam (Turkish bath and massage room), which was open from 1700-2200 
for the prisoners use. 
 
¶11. (SBU) A large, clean cafeteria, manned by inmates, appeared to 
offer a wide range of food.  The prisoners were able to avail 
themselves of educational and work opportunities.  Prisoners were in 
the midst of constructing a large outdoor recreation yard, designed 
by a prisoner who had a background as an architect, which will have 
a large water fountain and extensive brickwork - all constructed by 
prisoners.  Other prisoners worked in a tree nursery which now has 
250,000 trees, with a planned expansion to one million trees.  The 
trees will be sold to the public to earn income for the prison.  The 
prison complex has its own bakery, which is a large, stand-alone 
building that employs 40 inmates and prepares 14,000 loaves of bread 
daily.  In addition to supplying bread to the Sincan complex, the 
 
bakery also has contracts with outside entities, including the 
Turkish Central Bank, we were told.  The bakery was very clean and 
had extensive professional-level ovens, mixers, and other heavy-duty 
bakery equipment. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶12. (SBU) Overall, the Turkish prison system appears to be moving 
rapidly away from the stereotypes portrayed in the West.  We, of 
course, cannot be certain that the Sincan prison complex is typical 
of the newly emerging Turkish prison system.  If it is, it is indeed 
humane and advanced, with conditions superior to many U.S. prisons. 
We would encourage prison authorities from the United States and 
other countries to visit these facilities, to benefit from Turkey's 
experience and to counter the stereotypes of the past.