Syrian Kurds Get Outside Help to Manage Prisons

Syrian Kurds Get Outside Help to Manage Prisons

DERIK, SYRIA—

Syria's Kurdish-held regions have been hailed by some as areas of relative stability in a war-torn nation.  But rights monitors have expressed concern about the justice system in the enclaves, known collectively as Rojava.

Recently, Kurdish authorities began working with international organizations to set up new prisons and managing them better. VOA visited the main prison in the autonomous¹ Kurdish region of Syria, where most of the inmates³ are being held on terrorism charges.

As long as there is war, there will be prisons. And Kurdish forces in northern Syria are building new ones to keep up with the times.  

In the Kurdish-held town Derik, authorities have been getting outside help to ensure their prison is up to international standards. Prison manager Ebir Khalid said the joint⁴ effort is working.

“We have good connections with international organizations. The Geneva Call, in coordination⁵ with the International Red Cross, educated the members of the internal security forces. They will soon take a look at the inside of the prison,” Khalid said.

Prisoners interviewed by VOA say they're satisfied with their living conditions. But they, and the international groups helping⁶ run the prison, are unhappy with the long sentences imposed.

One prisoner said he was forced by Islamic State militants⁷ to photograph Kurdish positions ahead of an attack.

“There is one location nearby and they told me to take pictures of that. I took the pictures and handed them to IS militants. One week later, I turned myself in to the local authorities,” said the inmate².

While the Kurdish justice system still troubles human rights groups, authorities say the prisons are run more professionally than in the past.

The manager of the prison in Derik chalks it up, in part, to high-level positions Kurdish women can hold.

“Women are usually more compassionate⁸ than men; so, managing a prison is a woman’s job,” Khalid said.

Gender⁹ issues aside, international prison standards are seen here as one way of ensuring human rights are upheld, even in war that has violated so many.

1 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

2 inmate   

n.被收容者；(房屋等的)居住人；住院人

参考例句：

• I am an inmate of that hospital.我住在那家医院。
• The prisoner is his inmate.那个囚犯和他同住一起。

3 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

5 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

8 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。

9 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。