MPs Caroline Marti from the Socialist Party, Jean Rossiaud and Katia Leonelli from the Greens and Jean Burgermeister from the Left Union (Ensemble a Gauche) submitted a proposal to the Geneva Canton Parliament to draw attention to the hunger strikes and take action.

The MPs had held a press statement and issued a joint declaration on the hunger strikes recently, and have now submitted a proposal to the Canton Parliament to urge the Geneva State Council and the Switzerland Federal Council to take action.

SYSTEMIC OPPRESSION AND VIOLENCE

The proposal pointed to the hunger strike that Leyla Guven and prisoners continue despite their deteriorating health to break the isolation imposed upon Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Ocalan and stressed the anti-democratic practices of the Erdogan regime against the Kurdish people.

The proposal stressed that the Turkish state has systemically imposed oppression and violence upon the Kurdish people and added that there are severe rights violations in prisons in particular. The proposal said there is great oppression and isolation imposed upon especially Kurdish political prisoners and added that there are thousands of people on hunger strikes protesting this, throughout the world including Geneva.

“GENEVA SHOULD PLAY ITS ROLE”

The proposal said the city of Geneva is important in upholding human rights in the international arena and continued to call on the Geneva Stata Council:

“The Geneva State Council should take action to protect the democratic rights of the Kurdish people and use all diplomatic ways to play its role in the release of Kurdish political prisoners. The Council should also support the Kurdish community’s efforts in Geneva and urge the Switzerland Federal Council to action on the matter.”

The proposal for the Geneva State Council to take action in the Parliament will be assessed by the general assembly in the coming days.