29/12/2025 | Writer: Yıldız Tar
Yıldız Tar wrote the story of Poyraz, a trans man prisoner who died under suspicious circumstances in Sincan Prison, covering the questions awaiting answers after his death and what his family conveyed.
Poyraz is among those whose names we only heard after they died. He lost his life under suspicious circumstances at the beginning of this month, on December 1st, in the Women's Closed Prison of the Ankara Sincan Penal Execution Institutions Campus, where he was incarcerated. The autopsy report and the result of the investigation will determine whether the incident was suicide or murder.
Poyraz was a 28-year-old trans man. Just after being transferred from his ward to a new ward where trans men are isolated, he was found hanging by a rope from his neck.
With the arrival of a new director, a practice of taking trans men from their wards and moving them elsewhere had begun. While speaking with his sister in August, Poyraz had expressed his concern, saying, "I guess my turn will come too." But to no avail. The practice of profiling trans individuals using hormones in prison had already started, and the prison administration was holding meetings with individuals they "suspected" of being trans men.
Questions awaiting answers in Poyraz’s death
Four trans men had already been taken to this isolation ward before Poyraz. On December 1st, they were all taken out for a psychologist appointment together. When they returned, they saw that a photograph of a fifth person had been added to the photo list at the entrance of their ward. While they were rejoicing that someone new had arrived, they encountered Poyraz’s body hanging by a laundry line.
Questions regarding Poyraz’s death and what trans men experience in Sincan are awaiting answers:
Why and how was this ward, where trans men are isolated, opened in Sincan?
Why were the moments Poyraz was brought to the ward not included in the camera footage sent to the file?
Why did the institution's medical staff not intervene for a long time after the officers took Poyraz out of the ward in a blanket?
Why did the ambulance arrive late?
Is it a coincidence that pressure on prisoners increased and a death occurred after the prison director changed?
And what about similar incidents occurring in institutions where the same director served previously?
“Poyraz’s friends…”
Poyraz’s family is grappling with these questions as well. But while waiting for justice, they also want Poyraz’s story to be heard. Precisely for this reason, when they came from their hometown Bursa to Ankara to give their statement to the prosecutor's office, they also wanted to meet "Poyraz’s friends" at the Pembe Hayat (Pink Life) association. Immediately after their work at the courthouse with lawyers Senem Doğanoğlu and Nergiz Görnaz, they came to the association office. And they were welcomed by LGBTI+ individuals and families with LGBTI+ children.
Poyraz’s mother Fatma, his sister Elif, and his cousin accepted our condolences, unable to hold back their tears. A silence fell over the room. What could be said? A young person, just 28 years old, had died. And in a prison, where he should have been under the protection of the state.
We asked them to tell us about Poyraz. Because, although they called us "Poyraz’s friends," none of us knew Poyraz personally. The family knew we didn't know him either. But getting to know each other without ever meeting is the destiny of LGBTI+ people in our country...
Meet Poyraz…
His sister describes Poyraz. She says he was a Galatasaray fan. His time of death was 9:05. She recalls both the time of death of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, whom Poyraz loved very much, and 1905, the founding year of Galatasaray. The sister, who is a Fenerbahçe fan herself, talks about her rivalry with her Galatasaray-fan sibling.
Poyraz was from Bursa. Their childhood was spent in Bursa. Even when he was little, he liked to have his hair cut very short. If it had to be long, he would definitely wear a hat. People used to mistake him for a "boy." This made Poyraz very happy. Even back then, there were times he introduced himself as Osman.
Poyraz shaved his own head in prison. Those who know are aware that shaving one's head in prison is seen as a "rebellion." He told his sister this too. His sister was worried, but could anyone talk Poyraz out of it...
The name selection process was also a bit fluctuating for the spirited Poyraz. First, he said Osman. Then his heart leaned towards Haydar. Finally, he took his name from the wild wind, Poyraz (Northeaster).
After choosing his name, they celebrated his first birthday with a cake featuring cartoon characters. After all, it was the first birthday of his new life. Is being reborn, giving birth to oneself, not one of the strongest actions deserving of celebration?
Poyraz lived by his name. According to his mother, he was always making jokes. He wanted to make those around him laugh. Young Poyraz was also very enthusiastic about theater. Looking back now, his sister describes her brother saying, "Maybe he just wanted everyone to accept and love him." She says, "He could never tolerate injustice. He wanted to do something not just for his own rights, but for anyone he saw on the street. My brother was emotional. He would take on other people's troubles as his own."
Poyraz also faced violence when he was stopped at a police checkpoint in Bursa. The fact that the person in front of the police was completely different from the name and photo on the identity card became an excuse for violence.
Poyraz wanted to fight for his own rights; he wanted to join LGBTI+ associations while he was alive. His sister says that as his family, they want to do what his life was not long enough to achieve.
Poyraz, who should have blown like the wind he was named after in this life, was torn from his family and loved ones at the age of 28. His family donated his organs, saying, "Poyraz would have wanted this."
At the condolences gathering at Pembe Hayat, his family made new friends. Friends who believe that the life and death of a trans man should not be this cheap.
And Poyraz placed a responsibility on all of us. To not forget him, and those like him whose lives were cut short for various reasons; to not forget those who want to live freely as themselves, to tell their stories, and to make them a part of our own stories...
What his sister wrote in the condolence book actually tells everything:
“22.12.2025 Monday Hello. I am Poyraz's Sister. His 'cancağızı' (dear one) as he put it. I can say my brother was a piece of my soul and my child. I want his cotton-soft heart and naive thoughts to live on with you beautiful people and with us. I believe he touched many people's lives throughout his life and left beautiful marks. Your support is very precious to us, thank you all very much. 'Leave cherished traces on the lives you touch' I love you, Poyrazko Galatasaray”
What happened to Poyraz?
The Pembe Hayat Association announced Poyraz's suspicious death on December 10th. Allegedly, after the death, the prosecutor's office came to the prison for inspection two days later; the statements of witnesses have not yet been taken. According to information provided by lawyers; four trans men prisoners in Sincan Prison have been kept in isolation conditions for a long time. It was stated that on the day the four prisoners were taken collectively to the psychiatry service, a new person was transferred to their ward; and when the prisoners returned, they found this person hanging. According to the prisoners' account, they tried to perform the first intervention themselves by cutting the rope with a lighter. It was reported that although guards were summoned and chaos ensued in the room, the medical team did not arrive for a long time.
Lawyers stating that the new director, who started duty in the prison a few months ago, initiated discriminatory practices against trans prisoners, said that prisoners were frequently asked questions like "How do you feel?", "What is your orientation?" and that those who said "I am not heterosexual" were treated differently. Allegedly; while even the prisoners having short hair became a reason for transfer to separate wards, it was reported that some prisoners completely gave up on the gender reassignment process for this reason.
Following Poyraz's death, protests and press statements were held in many cities and campuses such as Ankara, Istanbul, Diyarbakır, Kuşadası, Mersin, and Izmir, demanding an effective investigation into the death.
Many MPs, especially Labour Party (EMEP) Gaziantep Deputy Sevda Karaca, brought the suspicious death to the agenda of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM). Karaca voiced allegations that homophobic and transphobic practices intensified after the director appointed to the prison arrived and that 4 deaths occurred within the 4 months the director was in office.
DEM Party deputies applied to the TBMM Human Rights Investigation Commission regarding Poyraz's suspicious death. In the application, it was demanded that the incident not be closed with the assumption of "suicide" and that systematic rights violations in prison be investigated.
More than a hundred rights organizations signed the statement text prepared after Poyraz's death. Stating that they would not allow Poyraz's death to be covered up with the "suicide" assumption, the organizations called out to the Ministry of Justice and the General Directorate of Prisons and Detention Houses, announcing a list of 6 demands:
- An independent, impartial, and effective judicial investigation regarding Poyraz’s death must be conducted immediately; the incident must not be closed with the assumption of "suicide."
- All materials, including crime scene investigation, camera recordings, transfer and infirmary records, shift schedules, and disciplinary documents, must be secured transparently; necessary administrative measures must be applied against responsible personnel against the possibility of spoliation of evidence.
- Statements of witness prisoners must be taken without pressure or retaliation; threats of disciplinary investigation directed at prisoners staying in the ward must be terminated immediately.
- Isolation/segregation practices against trans prisoners must be ended; rights to sports, ventilation, social activities, education, and common areas must be made available equally and safely. Monitoring reports of civil society organizations indicate that the isolation of trans/LGBTI+ prisoners is a widespread area of rights violation.
- The right to health of trans prisoners must be guaranteed; clear, binding, and anti-discriminatory national standards must be published for access to hormone therapy and gender reassignment process services.
- Staff training against discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation in prisons must be made mandatory; monitoring mechanisms must be strengthened; civil society's access to prisons and reporting opportunities must be expanded.
Tags: human rights
