The European Kurdish Women’s Movement (TJK-E) led a march in Strasbourg, France, on Tuesday to raise awareness of the prolonged incommunicado detention imposed on Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan, deeming it a “crime against humanity”, and called for his release.
The march comes as part of a global campaign launched on 10 October 2023 which has seen a host of activities across continents advocating for Öcalan to be released as a vital step towards a political solution to the Kurdish question.
The marchers, who carried signs and banners in various languages, emphasised to European institutions, including the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), that Öcalan’s situation was a “red line”, urging the institutions to take responsibility and act.
Demonstrators highlighted the sacrifices made by the Kurdish people, especially Kurdish women, in their sustained fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). They credited the Kurdish liberation movement with not only preserving human dignity but also protecting Europe from ISIS militants.
The statement released by TJK-E criticised the various European institutions for silence and inaction regarding Öcalan’s total isolation, noting that his situation has been recognised as a human rights violation. The CPT has failed to visit to Öcalan at the Turkish prison island of İmralı, which demonstrates complicity in the rights violations, the TJK-E added.
Culminating in a sit-in at the Council of Europe, the protesters celebrated a determined and resilient commitment to Öcalan’s cause. The rally was followed with speeches by Berivan Fırat, co-spokesperson for foreign affairs of CDK-F, and Selma Sürer, member of TJK-E, who called on European institutions to cease complicity in crimes against the Kurdish people, and emphasised that a peaceful solution to the Kurdish question wholly depends on securing freedom for Öcalan.
