Ankara hosts fair for products made by inmates

The ‘İşyurtları Ürün ve El Sanatları Fuarı’ (Workhouse Products and Handicrafts Fair) is currently being held at Başkent Millet Bahçesi. Organized by the Ministry of Justice’s Prison and Detention Houses Workhouse Institution, the event showcases hundreds of products created by convicts and detainees using vocational skills acquired in prison workshops.

A total of 122 different workhouse institutions are participating, offering a wide range of goods including furniture, food, clothing, accessories, and decorative items. The fair aims to make production processes visible and support the social integration of inmates.

Workshop officials highlighted the educational aspect of the program. Through a cooperation protocol between the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of National Education, inmates participate in training under the Apprenticeship Training Centers system. This provides them with professional skills, wages, and social security. Officials noted that these vocational gains serve as a source of income for individuals once they return to civilian life after release.