Trade Union Campaign: Leader Ocalan's incommunicado detention must be lifted

The Trade Union Campaign for Abdullah Ocalan's Freedom, which is based in the United Kingdom, organized a press conference in front of the European Parliament in Brussels regarding the isolation imposed on leader Abdullah Ocalan, in which representatives of the Trade Union campaign participated in the meeting, as well as representatives of organized campaigns in the NE Syria and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, representatives of the Kurdistan People's Congress (KNK) and the KONGRA-GEL, in addition to representatives and members of Kurdish associations from several European countries.

The campaign expressed serious concerns about Ocalan’s health and safety, as no news has been received from him for over two years, and called on the European Union and the Committee against Torture to bear their responsibilities.

A huge banner was raised in front of Parliament in Luxembourg Square, calling for the freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan.

The Isolation is a violation of human rights principles

Sarah Glynn, writer and Permanent Vigil representative for leader Ocalan, highlighted that Ocalan has spent the majority of his imprisonment since 1999 in absolute isolation. “Isolation is contrary to international human rights principles,” she said.

She also mentioned the Lausanne Agreement which caused problems, and stressed that there will be no democratic and peaceful solution to the issue of the Kurdish people without lifting the isolation of Abdullah Ocalan.

Isolation is not acceptable

Simon Dobbins, the international director UNITE in the United Kingdom, called on the Committee against Torture to provide information about the leader Abdullah Ocalan, and confirmed that there was no legal basis for isolation, and called on the European Union and the Committee against Torture to provide information, and confirmed that the continued detention of Detainees in these conditions are unacceptable and that Abdullah Ocalan plays a "decisive" role in resolving the issue of the Kurdish people.

From Italy, Antonio Amoruso of the CUP People's Union  stressed the importance of this press conference and talked about the importance of Abdullah Ocalan's freedom to resolve the conflict peacefully, and the eighth mayor of Rome, Amadeo Ciachinari, spoke about the democratic project of Abdullah Ocalan, and called on Italy and the European Union to pressure to improve The circumstances of the leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Michaela Arricale, lawyer for the Research and Investigative Center for Democracy (CRED), strongly criticized the Committee Against Torture for not carrying out its duties.

As for Laura de Bonfils of the ARCI Foundation in Brussels mentioned that they asked about the circumstances of Abdullah Ocalan and demanded an end to human rights violations.

The representative of the LAP party in Basque, Vicente Jose Recondo, confirmed that Abdullah Ocalan is the guarantor of a democratic and peaceful solution to the Kurdish issue.

Mike Arnott, the President of the Scottish Trade Union Confederation (STUC), expressed his solidarity with Abdullah Ocalan and the Kurdish people, saying: "Nelson Mandela could have seen his family, the same thing happened to Abdullah Ocalan."

 He recalled the last visit of the Committee against Torture: "We want to obtain information about Abdullah Ocalan, his family and the Kurdish people."

Scottish parliamentarian Rosa Salih said that Abdullah Ocalan has been living in isolation in flagrant violation of international human rights for 24 years, and called on the European Parliament to put pressure on the Turkish government.

At the end of the conference, Jürgen Klute of the European United Left/Northern Greens group stated that they had gathered over of the inaction of European institutions and listed their demands as follows: "Isolation must end, Abdullah Ocalan must be free, and the war against Syria / Rojava must be stopped." .

Then the organizations also made a statement, stressing that it had been 29 months since the last contact with Abdullah Ocalan: “It was reported that Abdullah Ocalan received anonymous threatening messages through the prison administration in Imrali, we are very concerned about his safety and health."

The statement indicated that a new "disciplinary punishment" was applied to the leader Abdullah Ocalan and the other prisoners on July 18, 2023, and said: "These alleged penalties have no legal basis in the Turkish or European legal framework. These are deliberate measures to extend the policy of isolation."

The statement noted that these legal and institutional violations do not only affect the rights of one person, but also affect stability, safety and human rights on a regional scale.

 In this context, the following policies were called for urgent adoption:

* The Turkish government should follow previous recommendations of the Committee Against Torture and the European Court of Human Rights regarding prison conditions in Imrali.

Abolition of aggravated life imprisonment, which is contrary to Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

To the Cabinet of the Council of Europe:

* Discussing the Turkish government's rejection of the proposals submitted by the Committee against Torture to continue.

*Clarify the steps that will be taken to hold the Turkish government accountable.

To the Committee Against Torture:

* Provide a special statement about whether there was a meeting with Abdullah Ocalan during the last visit.

* Provide specific information about the details of this meeting.

To all local and international political parties:

* Work for the release of Abdullah Ocalan in conditions that allow him to participate in negotiations for a democratic and peaceful solution to the issue of the Kurdish people in Turkey.

The organizations participating in the press conference of the European Parliament on the issue of Abdullah Ocalan are:

United Trade Union Cluster (CUT) Cosatu, and the General Confederation of Galician Trade Unions (CIG), LAP, STELAS, the General Consolidated Union (CGT), COPAS,

the General Inter-Union Confederation, the Alternative Workers' Confederation of Catalonia (IAC), and the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU), Intersindical Valenciana, STUC, Basque Confederation (ELA), and the Center for Research and Investigation for Democracy (CRED),CSI, SAT, ARCI, and for the Popular Ecological and Social (PEPS), TUC, and France - Kurdistan.

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ANHA