DEM Party urges Turkish justice minister to ease Ocalan isolation

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Representatives of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) met with Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc on Thursday, urging him to ease the isolation of jailed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan and allow him contact with public figures to facilitate efforts for a peace process.

DEM Party parliamentary bloc deputy heads Sezai Temelli and Gulistan Kilic Kocyigit, along with Ozturk Turkdogan, co-chair of the party’s law and human rights commission, held the meeting with the minister to convey concerns regarding the detention conditions of PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kocyigit said they told the minister that “Mr. Ocalan would not be able to contribute to this process under isolation conditions,” and emphasized that improving his conditions was essential for the peace process to move forward.

“Mr. Ocalan’s conditions were the most important topic for the process to advance, and ... must be corrected without fail as soon as possible,” she added.

he DEM Party is leading an initiative aimed at mediating peace between Ankara and the PKK. The party released a message from Ocalan in late February calling on the PKK to disarm and disband. In response, the PKK declared a unilateral ceasefire and expressed willingness to uphold Ocalan’s call.

However, the group also accused the Turkish government of continuing military operations and said a physical meeting with Ocalan was necessary for the peace process to succeed.

Kocyigit said they also highlighted the importance of allowing Ocalan to meet with public figures of his choice.

“We underlined that it is very important for some intellectuals, writers, and journalists that Mr. Ocalan wants to meet with to go to the island and establish contact with him,” she stated.

When asked how the justice minister responded, she said, “The minister also noted these carefully.”

The DEM Party on Monday made their third visit to the secluded Imrali prison in northwest Turkey to meet with Ocalan.

When asked about whether Ocalan will be granted the “right to hope,” she said that “we comprehensively evaluated Mr. Ocalan’s working conditions, health, and security conditions,” without giving a clear answer.

The law concerns prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment who are otherwise ineligible for conditional release.

In October, Devlet Bahceli, leader of Turkey’s Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), called on Ocalan to address the Turkish parliament and announce the dissolution of the PKK. He also suggested that Ocalan should benefit from the “right to hope” law, which could pave the way for his release if certain conditions are met.

However, Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc has repeatedly stated that there is no legal basis for granting Ocalan any right to release under the "right to hope" regulation.

Ocalan, who founded the PKK in 1978 and began an armed struggle against the Turkish state six years later, has been jailed on Imrali Island since 1999. His recent message has revived hopes for ending a decades-long conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives.

The PKK, initially fighting for Kurdish autonomy, now advocates for broader cultural and political rights within Turkey. Ankara and its Western allies classify the group as a terrorist organization.

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