An assessment mission reviewed how prison conditions and practices respond to the specific needs of women prisoners in Türkiye. With the support of two international consultants, the mission examined access to healthcare, safety and dignity, as well as institutional practices in selected prisons. It helped identify existing strengths, practical challenges and areas for improvement, supporting efforts to develop more gender-sensitive and human rights-based prison management in Türkiye. The mission started in Ankara with meetings involving representatives of the Directorate General for Prisons and Detention Houses, the Ministry of Health, the National Preventive Mechanism, civil society organisations and civil monitoring boards. This was followed by visits to selected pilot prisons: Sincan Women’s Prison, Eskişehir L-Type Prison and Diyarbakır Women’s Prison. Through interviews and observations with prison managers, prison staff and prisoners, the consultants gathered first-hand information on current practices and needs.
The mission marked an important milestone in the implementation of the Joint Programme, supporting efforts to strengthen the rights of women in prisons and to further align prison policies and practices with Council of Europe and other international standards.
The findings will contribute to the needs assessment and baseline study under the Joint Programme and guide future activities aimed at improving detention conditions, strengthening rehabilitation and reintegration pathways and advancing gender-responsive prison management in Türkiye.
The mission was organised within the framework of the Joint Programme on “Strengthening Rights and Conditions of Women in Prisons in Türkiye in line with International and EU Standards”, which is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.
