Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan has been held in the high security prison on the island of Imralı since February 15, 1999, when he was kidnapped in Kenya and taken against his will to Turkey. Lawyers have not heard from him, nor from the other three clients who are currently in that same “special” prison after the interrupted phone call on March 25, 2021. Since then, Öcalan and three his fellow inmates have not met with a lawyer, nor family visits, not a phone call, not a fax, not a letter. The last family meeting with Öcalan was on April 27, 2020, and the last meeting with his lawyers from the Istanbul-based Asrın Law Office dates back to August 7, 2019, more than 4 and a half years ago.

Tens of thousands from Germany and European cities gathered in Cologne yesterday for a central demonstration to protest the international conspiracy on its 25th anniversary. The demonstration was organized as part of the international campaign 'Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan, a political solution to the Kurdish question' launched on 10 October 2023. The demonstration was organized by the democratic Kurdish institutions and organizations in Europe and was supported by internationally renowned politicians, intellectuals, writers, academics and artists.

The people of Kurdistan and their friends, who filled the rally area, once again demonstrated their determination in the struggle to break the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan and to ensure his physical freedom.  Speaking at the rally, Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan's lawyer Ömer Güneş stated that an unprecedented isolation system has been going on in İmralı Island for 25 years and said, "There has been no news about Mr. Öcalan for 3 years. For 13 years, he has not been allowed to meet with his lawyers and, for 4 years, with his family. There is no other country on earth where such severe isolation is practiced. There is no other prison where human rights are so violated and rights and law are trampled underfoot. Neither Guantanamo nor the prison where Nelson Mandela was held have isolation conditions as severe as İmralı."

Europe should not remain silent against this lawlessness

Providing information on Abdullah Öcalan's national and international legal situation, Güneş underlined that both domestic and international legal institutions fail to implement their own decisions. Referring to the ECtHR's 2004 ruling on the retrial of Abdullah Öcalan, Güneş underlined that the situation is not being evaluated legally, but purely politically. Güneş also addressed the relevant international institutions, the human rights institutions and bar associations in Europe and said, "How much longer will your silence against such unlawfulness last? How will you defend justice and law in this way? Fulfill what the ECtHR has decided.” Expressing that the Turkish state suppressed Kurdish national demands by hanging Kurdish leaders in the past, Güneş said that the Kurdish community should stand up for their leader and wage a social struggle to liberate him.

Abdullah Öcalan is the representative of four parts of kurdistan

After Güneş, representatives of Kurdistani alliance parties and Kurdish organizations, including parties from Rojava, Bashur, Iran and Turkey, took the stage to greet the crowd. On behalf of the Kurdistani alliance, KNK Co-President Ahmet Karamus addressed the audience and said, "On behalf of patriotic and honorable Kurds, the KNK and all parties, organizations and personalities, we salute this tremendous rally against this isolation. We send our greetings to the Kurdish people's leader Abdullah Öcalan. The Kurdish people's leader has been in captivity for 25 years. Many European countries also support the Turkish state. In the last 35 months, there has been absolute isolation. However, you have shown great will here. We hope that this will will break this isolation. Dear friends, this is not just a problem of one person. Öcalan is the representative of four parts of Kurdistan. The issue should be approached on this basis. This people did never and will never kneel to the AKP-MHP fascist regime. The Kurdish people now want to govern themselves. This is the open and clear demand of the four parts of Kurdistan."

'Germany and EU should put pressure on Turkey to solve the Kurdish question’

Addressing the German government and the European Union on behalf of the Kurdistani Alliance, Karamus said, "I would like to send a message to the German government. Stop supporting the occupying Turkish state. All states that support the Turkish state are a partner in this crime. Therefore, we call upon Germany and other EU countries to stand by the Kurds. Germany should use its political influence over the Turkish state to solve the Kurdish question. Germany and the European Union should put pressure on the Turkish state for a solution. They should stop supporting the occupying, fascist AKP-MHP regime. Mr. Öcalan's freedom is indispensable for the political solution of the Kurdish question because he is the representative of this people."

Ayten Kaplan, who spoke on behalf of TJK-E (Kurdish Women’s Movement in Europe), stated that “the aim of the international conspiracy against Abdullah Öcalan was to silence the Kurdish people and destroy their demands for freedom, but the Kurdish people have stood by their leader for 25 years by manifesting a growing will on the streets.”

Manuella Demir, member of the Syriac Union of Europe and Çiğdem Devran, on behalf of the Democratic Forces Union, made speeches.

Internationalist youth who participated in the Tevgera Ciwanan and Long March actions also took the stage and made a statement and highlighted their demand for the freedom of the Kurdish leader.