Turkey is now witnessing the imprisonment of entire family members. Betul baby is also one of them… Her mother was sentenced to 9 years, the father was sentenced to 10,5 years. Betul baby is now behind the bars too.
SEVİNÇ ÖZARSLAN
BOLD- A new one has been added to the babies entering the prison. Selma Betül Urunga, 2, entered Mersin Tarsus C-Type Closed Prison, where her mother, Fatma Urunga (34), had been detained for a week. His father Ersin Urunga (37) has been in the same prison for 16 months. Thus, the number of families detained in the same prison, mother, father, and child, also increased.
Betul baby’s mother has been sentenced to 9 years and her father 10,5. And the family has two more children.
Fatma Urunga, who was first reported by her immediate relatives 2 years ago on the grounds that she had an affair with the Hizmet Movement, was pregnant with her daughter Selma Betül 8.5 months. In December 2016, she was taken from her home and moved to the Adana Police headquarters. She was kept one night in jail. The next day she was released on condition of judicial control.
Food Engineer Fatma Urunga, who was on trial for more than a year accusation of membership of a terror organization. She was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment. Urunga, who thought that she would be wrongly punished, chose not to go to the decision hearing and to hide.
She was arrested on Friday, May 3, 2019. Human rights defender People’s Democratic Party’s Kocaeli Deputy Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu had raised a voice to the mistreatment Urunga had been subjected to in the custody of the Adana Security Directorate.
Fatma and Ersin Urunga were subjected to abuses and humiliations in both the detention and court proceedings, they were also subjected to shouting and humiliation to such an extent derogatory that would offend ones honor by the judges.
HAKAN and METIN WERE LEFT TO GRANDMOTHER’S CARE
Chemistry teacher Ersin Urunga was detained at a crossroads in Adana, in January 2018 while there was no arrest warrant. Urunga, who was detained for 15 days, was arrested by Adana 11th High Criminal Court and sent to Mersin Tarsus C Type Closed Prison.
Ersin Urunga’s trial continued for 10 months. 4 people withdrew his statement before the hearing, and upon the request of the public prosecutor, he was sentenced to 10.5 years imprisonment.
The Urunga family has two more children, besides Selma Betül. Hakan, 8, and Metin, 6, now live with their grandmother. Thus, one more family was fragmented. According to the latest figures disclosed, in Turkey’s prisons, there are about 800 babies and thousands of fragmented families.