Van Bar Association President Sinan Özaras emphasised that the right to hope and the lifting of isolation can never be turned into a political bargaining issue and that the state must fulfil its legal obligations.
Sinan Özaras, President of the Van Bar Association, spoke to ANF about the isolation of Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan and the ‘right to hope’ issue, which has been frequently raised in recent days.
Özaras stated that isolation is a practice that detaches a person from his/her social ties and isolates him/her from social life and that it should be considered as a torture and health problem. Özaras said, “A person should lead a socially and psychologically healthy life. The isolation of Mr Öcalan is exactly about this. The ECHR convention defines ill-treatment as torture unworthy of human dignity. Legally, this situation is against human rights. Moreover, it should not only be seen as a violation of a person's health or human rights; it is also against the functioning of the law and democratisation efforts of the country in question.”
Özaras stated that the situation of Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan is not a matter of law, but a personalised practice, and noted that the ECtHR judgement was violated.
Özaras pointed out that the practice of isolation, which prevents social reconciliation between Kurds and Turks in Turkey, threatens social peace beyond the legal references of the state. He noted that MHP (Nationalist Movement Party) leader Devlet Bahçeli recently made a statement that Abdullah Öcalan could benefit from the right to hope, and pointed out that this statement means the acceptance that there is isolation and that Bahçeli's words are a confession in this regard.
Özaras emphasised that the right to hope is a right that eliminates the lifelong imprisonment of a person. Stating that this right is compatible with Article 3 of the ECHR, which prohibits ill-treatment and torture, Özaras said that Turkey's domestic legislation is an obstacle to this right and added: “Turkey should make an arrangement to implement the ECtHR judgements with its domestic legislation. This is necessary not only for Mr Öcalan but for all citizens.”
Finally, Sinan Özaras stated that the right to hope and the lifting of isolation can never be turned into a political bargaining issue and that the state must fulfil its legal obligations. Emphasising that the judgments of the ECtHR must be harmonised with domestic law, Özaras stated that this is a necessity for a rule of law.
