A woman detained during January 2026 nationwide protests, who spent approximately 40 days in Ward 11 of Qarchak Prison in Varamin, has provided a detailed account of the conditions faced by women held there.
According to her testimony, hundreds of women are confined in a limited space with inadequate basic facilities, while access to safe drinking water, showers, toilets, adequate food, hygiene supplies, and medical care is either severely restricted or dependent on prisoners’ financial means.
She also described repeated transfers between Wards 8 and 11 and the solitary confinement cells in Ward 6, restrictions on purchasing essential items from the prison store, sleeping on a cold floor, and humiliating treatment during body searches.
Ward 11: A Temporary Holding Area That Became a Long-Term Detention Facility
The former detainee said she was placed in Ward 11 after being transferred to Qarchak Prison. Although the ward was officially intended for temporary detention, many women remained there for weeks.
According to her account, severe overcrowding, insufficient sleeping space, limited sanitation facilities, and the lack of basic equipment forced many women to sleep on the cold floor or in the ward’s corridors.
Two Showers and Two Toilets for About 250 Women
According to her testimony, Ward 11 had only two showers and two toilets for approximately 250 women. Hot water was available for only one hour each day, forcing many detainees either to bathe in cold water or to go without showering for several days.
Combined with overcrowding and inadequate sanitation, these conditions increased the risk of skin diseases and infectious illnesses.
Restrictions on Cleaning and Access to Hygiene Supplies
The former detainee said that even when women attempted to purchase cleaning and disinfectant products with their own money, they were not allowed to buy or use them.
She stated that preventing prisoners from cleaning the sanitary facilities left the ward in a constant state of poor hygiene and placed additional pressure on the women.
Safe Drinking Water and Food Depended on Financial Means
One of the most significant aspects of her account concerns the lack of safe drinking water in Qarchak Prison. She said the tap water was not safe to drink and even caused skin irritation and redness when used for washing.
As a result, prisoners had to purchase bottled water from the prison store. According to her, the price of bottled water increased within a short period, making it unaffordable for many women.
She also described the prison food as extremely poor in quality and said that protein had effectively disappeared from meals. Many women, she added, faced persistent hunger because they could not afford to buy food from the prison store.
Restrictions on Prison Store Purchases
The former detainee said access to the prison store was not consistently available and that, at times, she was prohibited from making purchases as a form of punishment.
Since safe drinking water, adequate food, and many essential items were available only through the prison store, being denied access effectively meant being deprived of basic human necessities.
Humiliating Body Searches
According to her account, hygiene supplies were not distributed for two months, and the items eventually provided were of poor quality.
She also described the body search procedures as humiliating, saying that the conduct of prison personnel during these searches intensified the women’s sense of degradation and disrespect.
Repeated Transfers Between Prison Wards and Solitary Confinement
According to the former detainee, women detained during January 2026 nationwide protests were primarily held in Wards 8 and 11, while Ward 6 was designated for solitary confinement cells. Frequent transfers between these wards, together with the possibility of being placed in solitary confinement, imposed additional psychological pressure on the detainees.
Medical Care Depended on Ability to Pay
In another part of her testimony, the former detainee said that access to medical care also depended on prisoners’ financial resources and that medical treatment was effectively unavailable without payment.
She concluded by describing conditions in Qarchak Prison with a single sentence: “Everything in prison depended on money.”
Her testimony portrays the conditions faced by women held in Qarchak Prison, describing shortages of basic facilities, economic hardship, and restricted access to essential necessities.
