Turkey’s biggest problem, the Kurdish question, and the most fundamental problems of the Middle East, remain unresolved because of the Turkish government’s isolation policy, which is illegal, immoral and inhumane, said Cengiz Çiçek, a spokesperson for the People’s Democratic Congress (HDK) and a Green Left Party MP, at a press conference on Saturday.
The press conference, which was attended by a coalition of political parties and non-governmental organisations, aimed to draw attention to the severe isolation conditions of imprisoned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan. The activity is in preparation for the coming anniversary of what the Kurdish political movement calls “the day of the international conspiracy”, 9 October 1998.
In 1998, Öcalan was forced to leave Syria after threats of war from Turkey, supported by NATO member states. He moved from country to country before being abducted in Nairobi, Kenya, and brought back to Turkey. Since his return, Öcalan has been incarcerated in İmralı Prison under conditions that human rights experts and activists have characterised as tantamount to torture and mistreatment.
Çiçek stated that Abdullah Öcalan is enduring a personalised illegal regime on İmralı Island having been captured through a conspiracy orchestrated by international imperialist powers. According to Çiçek, the main aim of the conspiracy was to suppress the struggle for democracy and freedom, especially of the Kurdish people, in Turkey and the Middle East. He emphasised that this conspiracy is continuing in various ways, and noted that “[Öcalan’s] continued isolation, one of the most serious crimes against humanity, has taken on a new dimension” after two and a half years of absolutely no communication.
The MP went on, “The continuing situation of receiving no word whatsoever is gradually turning into great social anger. The inhumane isolation imposed on Mr Öcalan is in contravention of the relevant international conventions signed by Turkey, the universal principles of law and the Constitution”.
Çiçek further said that the effects of the isolation are spreading throughout the country and robbing society of its hope for coexistence. He added: “Those perpetuating the policy of isolation are the people who are condemning the country to inflation, gangs, drug mafias, hostility towards immigrants and refugees, and femicide. This means that the isolation of İmralı is one of the main reasons for all kinds of lawlessness, exploitation, inequality and injustice”.
He argued that the continued absolute isolation of Öcalan on İmralı Island is a direct consequence of the Turkish government’s relentless pursuit of total control over society. The MP believes that this isolation, if it continues, will erode the Kurdish people’s access to freedom and undermine the democratic rights of the wider Turkish population.
Consequently, he said, the struggle against the isolation serves both as a struggle for Kurdish freedom and as a broader struggle for democracy within Turkey.
Çiçek also stressed Öcalan’s key role in the facilitation of any realistic and lasting solution to the Kurdish question, citing past settlement processes as proof of his effectiveness.
