The German government had responded to the Left Party (Die Linke) inquiry on the federal government’s approach towards Imrali on January 19. Germany’s Minister for Europe Michael Roth called for an end to the isolation in Imrali as necessitated by the international treaties the Turkish state has signed.

Minister Roth stated that the aggravated isolation imposed upon Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Ocalan should be lifted and he should be able to meet with his family and lawyers.

But a week after Roth’s statement, the Merkel government still hasn’t taken any steps to make sure the hunger strikes are ended. They have put no pressure on the Turkish government.

URGENT CALL FOR THE GOVERNMENT

Kurdish-German MPs from Die Linke called on the Berlin administration to “break the silence so no deaths come and the isolation is ended”. A statement was made by Die Linke Federal MPs Gokay Akbulut and Helin Evrim Sommer and Hamburg state MP Cansu Ozdemir.

The three MPs said they are in solidarity with HDP Hakkari MP Leyla Guven who has been on a hunger strike for 77 days, and added that they are concerned for the deteriorating health of hunger strike activists.

Die Linke MPs stressed that Guven is an elected MP and should be released immediately, pointing out that Ocalan will play an important role in establishing peace in Turkey.

“GERMANY SHOULD PUT POLITICAL PRESSURE ON TURKEY”

The 3 Die Linke MP women said they fully support the Federal Government’s statement on isolation released on January 16 and continued: “To end the isolation, Turkey’s most important partner Germany should pressure the Ankara government. It is greatly important that the CPT send a committee to Imrali and observers also go to Diyarbakir.”

As a result of ongoing demonstrations by Kurdistanis living in Germany, and the pressure Die Linke exerted in the Federal Parliament, the Angela Merkel led Federal Government issued the following statement on January 16:

“On the health of imprisoned PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan, the Federal Government has no information. Like you, we have our information from the media that Mr. Ocalan met with his brother on January 12 and that his health is OK. In the report the European Committe for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) issued last year, they criticized the issue of connection to the outside world for the prisoners. Our call for the Turkish government is as follows: Ocalan should be able to meet with his lawyers and relatives, and restrictions for all prisoners in Imrali should be lifted.