A statement issued by campaigners from ‘Vigil for Öcalan’ highlights the progress made over the past year, including the creation of international networks involving lawyers, politicians, activists and civil society groups. The campaign has organised rallies, protests and seminars across Europe and Kurdistan to raise awareness of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) co-founder Abdullah Öcalan’s situation, and his vision for peace.
The ‘Free Abdullah Öcalan: A Political Solution to the Kurdish Question’ campaign, was launched in Strasbourg in October 2023, and aims to end Öcalan’s decades-long imprisonment and promote his ideas for peace and democracy in the Middle East.
Despite these efforts, Öcalan remains isolated in a Turkish prison where he has been held for more than 25 years. He has been without contact with the outside world for more than three years. The campaign called on supporters to escalate their actions, such as publishing editorials, organising events and engaging in diplomatic efforts to press for his release.
Öcalan, a founding member of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), was captured in 1999 and is serving a life sentence in Turkey. His supporters see him as a key figure in resolving the Kurdish question and ending decades of conflict in the region.
The campaign also noted that a group of 69 Nobel laureates had recently signed a letter calling for Öcalan’s release, and that their advocacy had prompted a rare response from the Committee for the Prevention of Torture, a European body that monitors prison conditions.
The statement concluded with a call for renewed activism, saying that Öcalan’s philosophy of reconciliation and peace remains relevant to resolving conflicts in the Middle East. The campaign plans to mark the anniversary with further actions in October.
