The sit-in action initiated by the Congress of Kurdish Democratic Society in Europe (KCKD-E) in front of the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) in Strasbourg ended on Friday with an unequivocal demand: the body should acknowledge its responsibility and act swiftly to ensure the enforcement of a contact with Abdullah Öcalan on the Turkish prison island of Imrali.

"The Kurdish people are losing their patience. Ignoring the isolation and torture Öcalan is being subjected to is an unacceptable provocation. We demand to hear from the leader," said Tahir Köçer of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK).

The three-day protest action in front of the CPT started on Wednesday. Since the Asrin Law Office, which legally represents the Imrali prisoners, stated at the end of November that the CPT probably had no personal contact with Öcalan during its last visit to Turkey in September, concern for the 73-year-old's life and safety has increased. Kurdish organisations are demanding clarification about the visit to Imrali and information about Öcalan's condition. There has been no sign of life from the PKK founder and his three fellow prisoners, Ömer Hayri Konar, Hamili Yıldırım and Veysi Aktaş, since March 2021. The last lawyer visit took place in 2019.

"Since the day Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan was taken from Kenya to Turkey in an act of piracy that violated international law, he has been subjected to isolation unprecedented in history," Köçer said.

"It is no secret that this has been the common practice in Öcalan's case for years," Köçer continued. He added that the CPT is also aware of this. "Our only demand to the body is: fulfil duties and to this end take measures that best meet its own responsibility. That is all we want."

Köçer appealed to the Kurdish public to continue uninterrupted activities for Öcalan's freedom. "Only resistance leads to victory," the politician said.