Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan has been held in İmralı Type F High Security Closed Prison for 27 years under conditions of isolation and “special execution” regime. Abdullah Öcalan's “Call for Peace and Democratic Society” made on February 27 remains on the agenda. While discussions on a solution continue, it is emphasized that Abdullah Öcalan's “right to hope” decision must be implemented in order for the process to be carried out in a healthy manner. In 2014, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Abdullah Öcalan's aggravated life imprisonment was in violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECtHR), which prohibits torture. 

 

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CoE), in its meeting held between September 17-19, 2024, discussed the violation decision of the ECtHR and informed Turkey to take the necessary measures without delay. The Committee gave Turkey until September 2025 to take the necessary steps and warned that it would issue an interim decision for the first time.

 

 

The “right to hope” concerns Abdullah Öcalan and thousands of prisoners in prison. İshak Demirel, Co-Chair of the Istanbul Branch of the Association of Lawyers for Freedom (ÖHD), made evaluations on Abdullah Öcalan's call and the “right to hope” in this context.

 

'THE CALL OF THE CENTURY'

 

Stating that they were as excited as everyone else before the call, Demirel emphasized that their excitement stemmed from the fact that it was the “call of the century”. Demirel said, “When we look at the text from the first word to the last, there was a deep analysis. It dealt with the relationship between Kurds and Turks, the environment in which the organization was formed, the current environment, criticisms against the organization, the evaluation of real socialism, and why previous processes had failed. Finally, a solution was proposed. There was a call by Mr. Öcalan to his own organization. The title of the call says it all. It is not a new description, it is something that has been thought for years. It was a call for a democratic nation and on this basis peace and a democratic society. This call is actually a beginning and is addressed to the whole society. The change in society will start after this call.” Pointing out that the call does not only cover Kurds, Demirel said that it covers Turks, Arabs and all societies and segments. 

 

WHAT IS THE RIGHT TO HOPE?

 

Stating that the state must take steps after the call, Demirel underlined that the “right to hope” should be implemented. Demirel said, “The right to hope is a term that we, as ÖHD and democratic lawyers, have expressed many times before. But when Mr. Bahçeli brought it up in the parliament, it attracted everyone's attention. Mr. Bahçeli also said that the isolation of Mr. Öcalan could be lifted and the 'right to hope' could be used. The 'right to hope' is actually not fully established in Turkish law. However, it is a term that has been included in international legislation through the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) judgment and the Rome Statute. The 'right to hope' means that every prisoner has the right to hope that one day they will be able to get out. In Turkey, there is no such provision for those sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment. There is a legal provision that says 'until death' and that they cannot be released under any circumstances. But the ECHR says this is unlawful and a violation of the prohibition of torture. This was stated in the Vinter, Öcalan and Gurban judgments. The ECHR does not give a deadline in the judgments, but it says that you should set a deadline with the changes you will make in the domestic regulations.” 

 

'REGULATION IS REQUIRED'

 

Reminding that Turkey has not taken any steps despite the ECHR ruling, Demirel said, "In fact, Turkey has further aggravated the isolation conditions on Mr Öcalan. Here, before the 'right to hope', the execution conditions are not carried out in accordance with the law in Turkey. From 2011 to 2019, there were no lawyer visits. After only a few meetings with his lawyer in 2019, the meetings were interrupted. A different law has been applied on İmralı Island Prison since 1999. However, especially after 2011, it was not in accordance with Turkey's own Execution Law. Mr Öcalan was banned from meeting with lawyers, family members and telephone calls for simple reasons such as pacing. Currently, talks are being held with the İmralı delegation. In our opinion, first of all, the conditions in İmralı Island Prison should be regulated at least until a regulation on the right to hope is made. Lawyer, family and phone calls should be made regularly. Mr Öcalan should benefit from his rights in the same way as a convict benefits from his rights."

 

Stating that there should be a communication channel between Abdullah Öcalan and the PKK, Demirel said, "Because Mr Öcalan made a call to his organisation. However, they stated that in order for the call to be fulfilled, the congress must be held by the founder. In this process, a communication channel should be established between Mr Öcalan and the organisation. His freedom should be ensured or this arrangement should be made in another way."

 

'PHYSICAL FREEDOM MUST BE ENSURED'

 

Reminding that the Committee of Ministers of the European Union held a meeting on the "right to hope" and gave Turkey a one-year deadline, Demirel said, "Turkey was supposed to make a regulation on the right to hope independent of the process. However, this process is moving very fast and the first step was taken by Mr Öcalan. Now the state also needs to take a step. One of the first steps should be a regulation regarding Mr Öcalan's right to hope. A period of 26 years has already expired. The conditions we call conditional 'release' can be put on the agenda for Mr Öcalan, taking into account the ECHR decision, and his physical freedom can be ensured. After the step taken by Mr Öcalan, the state needs a regulation within the scope of the right to hope as a reassuring step. The physical freedom of Mr Öcalan must be ensured."

 

'DOES NOT FORCE THE STATE'

 

Demirel stated that the democratic public opinion and all segments of society should embrace this process and said: "'Right to hope' is one of the most fundamental cornerstone of this process. The society also wants the physical freedom of Mr Öcalan. It wants physical freedom for Mr Öcalan's ideas to meet with the society and for an environment of peace to be created. The 'right to hope' is not an issue that will force the state. It will have already done what it should have done for years in this process. Other segments of the society should also voice this issue and support this arrangement."

 

MA / Ömer İbrahimoğlu