The Turkish Ministry of Justice plans to build 228 new prisons with a capacity of 137,687 in the next five years, Gazete Duvar reported.
In response to a question from main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Murat Erdemir regarding prison projects, the General Directorate of Prisons stated that 79 new prisons have been built since 2013, increasing capacity by 66,451. The new plan is to build 228 new prisons with a capacity for 137,687 inmates in the next five years.
According to Ministry of Justice data, there are currently 384 prisons with a capacity of 207,279 in Turkey; however, the total number of inmates was 228,983 as of October 2017.
The Justice Ministry announced on July 13, 2017 that 50,510 people have been arrested and 169,013 have been the subject of legal proceedings on coup charges since a failed coup on July 15, 2016, which the government accuses the faith-based Gülen movement of masterminding.
Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu on Nov. 16 said 48,739 people had been jailed and eight holdings and 1,020 companies seized as part of operations against the movement.
Supreme Court of Appeals President İsmail Rüştü Cirit said on Nov. 23 that 6.9 million people had been named as suspects in Turkey in 2016.