Enhancing the effectiveness of Civil Monitoring Boards in Türkiye in line with European Standards

The Civil Monitoring Boards (CMBs) have been actively involved in the external monitoring of the penitentiary system in the Republic of Türkiye through conducting on-site visits since 2001. The main task of CMBs is to conduct civil monitoring visits to the prisons and produce reports with binding recommendations for the Ministry of Justice. The deficiency of standards within the monitoring process, as well as the inadequate capacities and lack of training opportunities for the members, remained at unsatisfactory level for a long period of time.

The current “learning by doing” system should be replaced by an institutionalized training system. Therefore, there is an urgent need to work on the capacity building of the CMBs, as well as on increasing the quality of the whole process of the selection and training of its members in order to reach the European standards. Only a well-functioning external monitoring mechanism will contribute to a better penal system by decreasing the human rights breaches.

The Project was divided in 4 components:

Strengthening CMBs independence through revision of the applicable legal and regulatory framework in line with the international standards;
Enhancing CMBs efficiency by further developing their monitoring standards and working methodology and tools;
Ensuring sustainable training provision for the CMB members; and
Improving CMBs internal coordination and communication with other external monitoring mechanisms.

This Project was estimated to cover approximately 100 activities to be implemented by 31 May 2022, with an overall budget of 1,600,000 Euros.

Project documentation

Useful information

PROJECT NEWS

Back CoE HELP Course on CPT Standards launched in Turkey

@ Council of Europe

A group of 25 members of the Civil Monitoring Boards (CMB) got acquainted with an online course on the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) standards. The course was prepared under the European Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP), as an online learning tool that will help the CMB members to increase their knowledge and skills on the CPT standards on prisons and prison monitoring.

After the welcoming addresses by the representatives of Criminal Law Co-operation Unit of the Council of Europe and the Directorate General of Prisons and Detention Houses, the representatives of the CPT Secretariat and the HELP Programme, together with the national HELP tutor, presented the work of the CPT and the HELP course on the CPT Standards. They provided the participants with overview of the structure of the course, including the national adaptation process and important practical aspects, thus sharing with them necessary information for the online learning process.

Over the following month and based on the planning set by the national tutor, these selected CMB members will undertake the course, complemented by the adaptation to the domestic legal and institutional framework. In a long-term, it is expected that by using this course, CMB members will increased their knowledge on the CPT standards in prison monitoring and apply them when conducting their own visits to prisons.

The online launching event was organised on 30 June 2021, within the scope of the Project entitled “Enhancing the Effectiveness of the Civil Monitoring Boards in Turkey in line with the European Standards” implemented by the Council of Europe, and funded by Sweden, Switzerland, the Republic of Turkey, the Human Rights Trust Fund and Canada.

Turkey 1st July 2021