İbrahim Bilmez, one of the lawyers of Asrın Law Office representing Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, said that Turkey will lose in every sense unless it implements the ECtHR decisions. He noted that this issue concerns the opposition as well as the government.

Lawyer Bilmez spoke to ANF about the isolation of Öcalan in Imrali, the ban on family and lawyer visits, and the "right to hope".

Bilmez underlined that the isolation system in Imrali prison was designed beforehand. The infrastructure of the prison was already prepared before Öcalan was brought to Imrali in 1999.

ENDURING RESISTANCE IN IMRALI

Bilmez pointed out that the isolation imposed on Abdullah Öcalan was gradually systematized and aggravated. “The state is using the Imrali prison as a laboratory. It also employs different management techniques inside the prison. It tries, implements them there and then spreads them to the whole society of Turkey. There are numerous details and unlawful practices regarding the isolation system existing for the last 23 years. We have been trying to reveal these practices to the public for 23 years. Despite all the unlawfulness and isolation, there is an enduring resistance in Imrali, a spectacular one. In the 23-year period, Öcalan has continued his struggle against the state in a 10 square meter cell in Imrali, without compromising on his principles. What was his cause? It is about putting an end to the policies of denial and annihilation which have become structural since the establishment of the Republic and offering a solution to the Kurdish question through peaceful and democratic methods. Öcalan was already promoting these ideas before İmralı and he preserved them after his arrival at Imrali. He has sustained his struggle on the same course.”

PREVENTING HIS 'RIGHT TO HOPE'

The lawyer pointed out that the disciplinary punishments given to Abdullah Öcalan are, in a way, a pretext to prevent Öcalan’s right to meet his family during visitation days. “Disciplinary punishments will be cited against Öcalan if he happens to enjoy a possible 'right to hope' in the future. Likewise, the decisions of judges that prevent his lawyers' visits have no legal basis. They rely on a regulation that is contrary to the general principles of the law, contrary to Turkey's own relevant laws, has no legitimacy and is completely arbitrary. Let alone enjoy any right, we have not been able to hear from Öcalan and our other clients there for 18 months. I believe that this is a unique situation in the world. There is the example of Guantanamo, which busied the global public opinion previously, but the practices in Imrali have long surpassed the maltreatment in Guantanamo. The unlawfulness in Guantanamo could be reported to the public, and lawyers could visit it. However, there is an absolute isolation in place here in Imrali. We don't receive any news at all. We only have official information that our clients are there, and there is no other information. We are wanted to trust this information. Yet, we don't mean to believe in the official narration. We know that this state had officially lied to us almost every week from 1999 until the coup attempt in 2016. At that time, things like bad weather or coaster malfunction were always cited as a barrier to lawyer and family visits. Therefore, we do not trust this state. We continue our legal, diplomatic and political initiatives, and we will continue to do so. We observe that people are gradually starting to realize the outcomes of the isolation in Imrali and its effects on themselves. We think that these democratic reactions should be increased even more.”

TURKEY IS KILLING THE CLOCK

“When the democratic struggle and reactions equal Öcalan’s resistance in Imrali, then we will be able to see a solution to the problem. Indeed, there has been tremendous resistance in Imrali for 23 years. Öcalan continues his resolute struggle against this system under difficult conditions in İmralı. The democratic society also needs to see this, and I think people should raise the struggle accordingly. As for the aggravated life sentence issue, there is a deadline given to Turkey on that matter as well, which is until the end of September. This time limit was given to Turkey following the '9/2' application submitted to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. In fact, this process is not a one-year one. The European Court of Human Rights issued a judgement of violation in 2014, ruling that aggravated life imprisonment was tantamount to torture. Turkey has been requested to take steps and make regulations on this issue for the last 8 years. It was supposed to remove an aggravated life sentence, this form of execution, from its own laws. Yet, Turkey has failed to do so. As Öcalan’s lawyers, we have already made 9/1 applications many times. We made a further application last August. Our application on August 9 was responded to very quickly and we saw the usual stuff in that response. Turkey is doing what it has always done. It is doing what he does best in foreign policy and is killing the clock. Turkey is trying to spread it over time. This approach does not contribute to the solution to problems. The problems are only getting complicated. We hope that Turkey will take a step in this regard by the end of September. Last year, the Committee of Ministers gave a deadline until September 22 and asked Turkey to take steps, draft an action plan and inform the Committee on this issue, yet Turkey has made no strides so far. A very short and negative response was given to our application on August 9. They act as if there was no problem. The ECtHR keeps ruling that 'You cannot give a person an aggravated prison sentence'. Turkey responds mockingly and at the same time confesses that only Öcalan and other political prisoners are sentenced to penal servitude for life. We hope that Turkey will get rid of this mistake in a short time.”

A PROLONGED DEATH SENTENCE

Bilmez recalled that the death penalty was in force in Turkey, but it was not implemented when Öcalan was handed over to Turkey. “Afterwards, a very fast and show trial was held in Imrali and he was given a death penalty. At that time, Turkey had to abolish the death penalty due to the public backlash, the reactions of the Kurdish people and the trial at the ECtHR. Instead, a sentence dubbed “aggravated life imprisonment” was introduced. It is a form of punishment and execution that did not exist within the Turkish law before. The problem is that this is a harsher punishment than the death penalty. In literature, this punishment is called the death penalty that is spread over time. A person is put in prison without any hope of parole and held there until death. It means to spread death over time, killing prisoners slowly.”

LAWS ARE BY-PASSED

“Turkey has been bearing a grudge against Öcalan from the very beginning. It also informs the public that it is doing so. Öcalan has done everything he could to resolve the Kurdish question since 1994. He continued to adopt this attitude even after he was brought to Imrali. His attitude has been underrated. It was an attitude that served the whole of Turkey, the entire society of Turkey. The regulations and amendments requested by the ECtHR regarding aggravated prison sentence, that is, what we call the "right to hope" is something like this: After a certain period of time, after a reasonable period of time -the limit is not clear- the sentence in question needs to be reconsidered and evaluated after 15 or 20 years. A mechanism is supposed to be established by introducing legal arrangements. A committee created with this mechanism should re-examine the situation of the person sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment. The committee is asked to evaluate whether the person in question is harmful or beneficial to society. It may decide to release the person. Unfortunately, when it comes to Öcalan, big prejudices come into play. When it comes to Öcalan, the laws are by-passed. The aggravated life sentence was introduced for Öcalan. There was no such penalty within the Turkish law. Put into effect for Öcalan, this sentence later became a punishment given to hundreds, maybe even a few thousand other people. We don't even know the exact numbers yet. As we said, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe gave Turkey a deadline until the end of September. The Committee also wanted to know the number of people who were sentenced to life imprisonment in Turkey. Turkey has not even given an answer to this so far,” Bilmez said.

PENALTY SHOULD BE REVIEWED

The situation of the person given such a sentence should be reassessed after a reasonable time. An evaluation is made by considering criteria such as the person's age, health status, and social position. Öcalan's case is well-known. From an objective point of view, despite the bad conditions and torture imposed on him since 99 - which is confirmed by the ECtHR which ruled that a person sentenced to life imprisonment is tortured - he has worked and made efforts on behalf of the common good. When he was given the slightest opportunity, he immediately tried to use it for a solution to the Kurdish question. He was aware of his responsibility and power to resolve the Kurdish issue, and he still is. He did everything that needed to be done and took every step. Theoretically, he prepared road maps. He offered suggestions on how to achieve a solution. He came up with the idea of a committee of wisemen for the preparation of public opinion. He urged the PKK to declare a unilateral ceasefire and his call was heeded. Therefore, it makes no sense to consider Öcalan as a harmful person to Turkey’s society. On the contrary, he is an extremely useful person to the society of Turkey. In this respect, the right to hope is a right of importance. Turkey is supposed to make amendments in this regard. Otherwise, Turkey would become a country that does not implement the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights. Turkey has not fulfilled the requirements concerning the court's judgements since 2014. It is constantly spreading over time. Öcalan continues to resist and struggle despite a life sentence under torture conditions that get aggravated with each passing day. If Turkey does not comply with this decision, there is a possibility that the Council of Europe may impose sanctions. Turkey may even be excluded from the Council of Europe. If such a thing happened, it would be a great loss for Turkey in every sense. Human rights would be eroded further, and its already fragile economy may collapse. Turkey may completely be cut off from the Western world. The AKP is currently allying with the MHP. They have the power, but there is also an opposition that aims to take over this government within a year. This issue does not only concern the government, but also the opposition. If Turkey does not fulfil the requirements of the ECtHR decisions, it will lose in every sense. Not only the government, but also the opposition and the whole society will lose.”