European Kurdish Democratic Societies Congress (KCDK-E) Executive Board issued a written statement today saying demonstrations and activities will be held in several countries on January 14 against the isolation imposed upon Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan.

“The isolation and exclusion from the process imposed upon Leader Abdullah Öcalan by the AKP fascism and Erdoğan dictatorship still continues in a systemic way,” said the KCDK-E statement and continued:

“For a long time now, the fundamental humane and political demands like lawyers visiting the island, family visits, exercising the right to phone calls and letters have been removed, in an absolutely arbitrary fashion. Preventing communication with his movement, his people and his family is a violation of internationl human rights, as well as an extreme measure against a people’s leader and a strict implementation of a policy to increasingly isolate him from his nation and people.

We have declared time and time again that we will never accept this situation and stated that we as Kurdish people living in Europe and their political institutions will carry out an unlimited and constant struggle against the policy of isolation from the nation and exclusion from the process.

It has become known by all by now that since the Erdoğan coup developed in the face of the military coup attempt on July 15, a stricter isolation has been imposed upon him, and that his health and safety have become issues on the agenda along with the policies of isolation and decay.”

The statement underlined that the health, safety and freedom of Öcalan is of utmost vital importance to Kurds and said: “We are calling on the Kurds living in Europe and their allies to attend the marches and rallies we have decided to hold on January 14, 2017 in several centers.”

European Kurdish Democratic Societies Congress statement concluded with the following:

“We should consider attending the marches for the freedom of Leader Apo to be held in many centers in Germany, in Paris, in Marseille, in many countries including Switzerland, Sweden, Canada, Norway, Austria, Japan, Australia, Greece and Romania as a national duty and we should get involved with the process with this consciousness. Knowing that supporting Leader Apo means supporting the revolution, Kurdistan and the martyrs, we are calling on all to shout out once more for the freedom of Leader Apo with demonstrations and activities to be held on January 14.”