European anti-torture officials in Strasbourg have been urged to address the prolonged solitary confinement of Abdullah Öcalan, imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and to advocate for policy changes in Turkey.
Öcalan’s nephew Ömer Öcalan and his lawyer Özgür Faik Erol met with the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) on Thursday to discuss the ongoing solitary confinement of Öcalan at İmralı Prison and the broader implications for the Kurdish community. “We briefed the CPT on the solitary conditions at İmralı,” Ömer Öcalan explained.
The family voiced their concerns about the CPT’s lack of a deterrent mission, which they believe enables Turkey to continue its isolation tactics. Özgür Faik Erol highlighted the necessity for a more assertive approach, saying, “The CPT must take a stand to alleviate the Kurdish community’s concerns and improve Mr. Öcalan’s prison conditions.”
The CPT officials pointed out their constraints, noting they cannot disclose their reports without permission from the host country, which poses a significant barrier to resolving these issues.
On Thursday, a social media campaign was launched on X with the hashtag #CPTvisitÖcalan, remaining as a trending topic for several hours. Posts with the hashtag reached a wide audience, with one from Ömer Öcalan having over 40,000 views. Similarly, Meral Danış Beştaş’s post had almost 8,000 views and the DEM Party’s had 11,600.
On X, Asrın Law Office said the “CPT is responsible for putting an end to the conditions of torture and lack of information in İmralı. They must fulfil their responsibilities effectively and publicly.”
Meanwhile, the pro-Kurdish Democratic Regions Party (DBP) said “removing the isolation and obtaining the physical freedom of Mr. Öcalan is not only the solution to the Kurdish problem, but also the solution to all problems,” in their call to the CPT. The DEM Party added “Mr. Öcalan is the main interlocutor of the Kurdish issue. The key to the solution is in his hands.”
Separately, the DEM Party’s Berdan Öztürk said “Isolation is a crime against humanity. It is unacceptable for international human rights organizations to remain silent against this crime,” adding that the “CPT must end this silence immediately”.