Human Rights Association (IHD) Van Branch President Murat Melet talked about the isolation imposed on Kurdish people's leader Abdullah Öcalan.

Melet said that isolation is the heaviest crime that can be applied on a man, and added that it is an imposition that does not exist in any law, in any constitution or in any social norm or even in any law of society that has existed so far.

This inhuman practice, Meleti said, has been applied for many years in Turkey and on Mr. Öcalan.

Melet said: "In fact, the isolation on Mr. Öcalan is not applied only on Mr. Öcalan. It is a serious crime applied to people who share the ideas of Mr. Öcalan, sympathize with Mr. Öcalan and have a spiritual relationship with Mr. Öcalan. It is a method of torture, torture itself, we can say."

Melet continued: "The isolation on Mr. Öcalan is actually an isolation applied to society. The isolation imposed on Mr. Öcalan is actually applied to the whole Imrali Island. Because Imrali Island has been dehumanized and no creatures are allowed to be brought closer to Imrali Island. This shows that the isolation is not only applied to Mr. Abdullah Öcalan, but to the whole Imrali Island."

Melet ended his remarks by "calling once again to end isolation which is a crime against humanity. You can physically isolate a person but as we have seen and lived together for many years, this spiritual union, emotional union can never and will never break. We believe that negotiations should resume to allow the creation of a peace and democratic environment in Turkey and the Middle East."