The rotating hunger strike action initiated by prisoners in prisons to end the isolation of PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan, who is held in İmralı Type F High Security Prison, and to ensure his physical freedom continues on its 14th day. The action, which started on November 27 within the scope of the "Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan, solution to the Kurdish issue" campaign, will continue until February 15, 2024.

 

Prisoners had previously broken the isolation with hunger strikes and death fasts, and had PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan meet with his family and lawyers. Finally, as a result of the protests that started on November 8, 2018, under the leadership of Democratic Society Congress (DTK) CoChair Leyla Güven, turned into a death fast on April 30, 2019, and lasted for 200 days, PKK Leader Öcalan's lawyers were able to hold 5 meetings with their clients. The hunger strike and death fast ended on May 26 upon the call of Abdullah Öcalan. Abdullah Öcalan, who was able to use his right to call by phone for the first time on April 27, 2020, during his detention in İmralı, was able to talk to his brother Mehmet Öcalan by phone for the second time on March 25, 2021, due to concerns about health and security conditions. After this interrupted phone call, there has been no news from Abdullah Öcalan for 990 days.

 

Mustafa Yalçın, one of the signatories of the campaign signed by 770 lawyers and lawyers, launched by the Association of Lawyers for Freedom (ÖHD) on May 25, 2021, to meet PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan's request to meet with his lawyers, and ÖHD Dîlok Branch Co-chair, emphasized the place of absolute lack of communication in national and international legislation. He evaluated the hunger strikes launched by political prisoners in prisons on November 27.

 

ÖHD Dîlok Branch CoChair Mustafa Yalçın

 

'DISCIPLINARY PUNISHMENTS ARE USED AS A COVER FOR THIS UNLAWFULNESS'

 

Stating that the state of absolute lack of communication in İmralı, where the state of isolation is aggravated, has been maintained for 33 months with punishments given under the name of "discipline", Yalçın said: "PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan has been held in isolation in İmralı Island Prison for 25 years. Although Türkiye is a 'state of law', the conditions of other prisoners are not met. For 25 years, family and lawyers have been able to meet at certain times, but these were interrupted after the 'solution process'. There has been no news for the last 33 months. Disciplinary penalties are used as a cover for this unlawfulness; however, in the functioning of a state of law, these disciplinary penalties must be notified to lawyers and they must have the right to object. This right of the lawyers is usurped and after it is finalized, it is notified to the lawyers, or the lawyers are informed. After it is finalized, there is no intervention that lawyers can do. This process is carried out for political reasons. Sometimes this process can be changed with the pressure and intervention of democratic mass organizations. But unfortunately, we could not prevent this situation from changing in the last 33 months. Sometimes we, as associations and individuals, make applications under domestic law."

 

'OUR APPLICATIONS WILL CONTINUE'

 

Underlining that there was no response to their application to the Ministry of Justice to meet with 770 lawyers and lawyers in the past 2 years, 6 months and 15 days, Yalçın said: “Our request has not received any response. In addition, we also submit our demands by applying to international institutions and organizations. The CPT and the UN receive our applications, but they only make condemnations or similar statements due to political reasons. Because of this, we have not made much progress in the international arena. This doesn't stop us from applying, it doesn't silence our voices. We will continue to make applications."

 

'CPT AND ECtHR ARE MAKING POLITICAL DECISIONS'

 

Stating that the lack of news from PKK Leader Öcalan is explained by the concept of "incommunicado", that is, absolute lack of communication, in the international law literature, Yalçın said: "Absolute lack of communication and absolute isolation are the same thing. The CPT does not play its part in this matter. He did not publish the report on his latest visit to Imrali on the grounds that Turkey did not request it. The duty of international organizations is not to make political decisions, but to make legal decisions. The CPT's decisions are not legal but purely political. Recently, the ECtHR has been making some political decisions on this issue that have no place in law. PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan is held like thousands of other prisoners and should have the same rights as them. These conditions must be met." 

 

Referring to the rotating hunger strikes initiated by political and political prisoners in Turkey and Kurdistan prisons on November 27, Yalçın said: “Prisoners are on hunger strike because the isolation continues. There have been hunger strikes on different dates before and prisoners lost their lives. As ÖHD, we follow the ongoing hunger strikes in Dîlok(Gaziantep) and Kilis prisons. The Ministry of Justice must lift this lockdown before there is sad news. If they claim that 'we are a state of law', we expect them to act in accordance with the rule of law. We don't ask for much. We demand that the rights granted to any prisoner be granted to Abdullah Öcalan. Even the fact that we demand these most natural rights shows the state of the law."

 

CALL TO LEGAL AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS

 

Calling on all legal and non-governmental organizations, especially bar associations, to monitor and follow up the ongoing hunger strikes in prisons, Yalçın continued: “As ÖHD, we will follow the rights violations in all prisons in Turkey as much as we can. The consequences of not lifting the isolation will not only result in hunger strikes and deaths in prisons. This isolation is the reason for today's political and bureaucratic deadlock and many problems in the Middle East. If the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan is lifted, many problems will be solved by themselves. We've seen this before. When the isolation was broken even a little, an atmosphere of peace prevailed in the country. All bar associations and law organizations must play their roles in order to bring this atmosphere back. All democratic mass organizations should be the voice of prisons outside. As lawyers, we want to meet with our client immediately. No one should be afraid to voice their objections. Isolation has been lifted before, everyone must do everything they can to lift it again."

 

MA / Emrullah Acar