Dan Brown’s ‘Da Vinci Code’ not allowed at Istanbul’s Silivri prison: CHP MP

ISTANBUL

Bestselling author Dan Brown’s novel “The Da Vinci Code” was not allowed at Istanbul’s Silivri prison after authorities found it “unfavorable,” according to a main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy.

Speaking to daily BirGün, CHP Istanbul deputy Barış Yarkadaş said he was informed about the implementation by the relatives of a prisoner serving his sentence at the prison.

“The fact that Dan Brown’s book is not allowed at the prison is a completely arbitrary implementation. If we do not protect justice and the law against this arbitrariness, we might face more of such cases,” Yarkadaş said.

“The Silivri Prison management had told the prisoner’s family that they would not take the book ‘The Da Vinci Code’ inside. I think they became nervous after seeing the word code in the book, because there is no other explanation to that. Otherwise, why would they not take the book? I think Dan Brown can find the answer to this question by coming to Turkey, because a decoder like Dan Brown should have his hands on it in order to understand what is happening,” he said.

“In his book Inferno, Dan Brown had sent the protagonist to Istanbul. He can even launch the new version of his series from Istanbul and put the title of his new book as ‘The Silivri Code,’” Yarkadaş said.

The CHP deputy also added that he had issued a parliamentary question to Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül regarding the issue.

“The aforementioned novel is published by Altın Kitap. The prison management had said they would not take books published by Altın Kitap inside. I think they had forged a fictive link between Altın Kitap and Altın Nesil [Golden Generation] of FETÖ [Fethullahist Terrorist Organization]. It is a perfect example of the abdication of reason and paranoia,” Yarkadaş said.

He also stated that the prison management had confiscated handheld radios in some cells and also issued a notification to prisoners over the style of their hair and beard “to comply with the rules of the general public.”