The 15th International Conference on "The European Union, Turkey, The Middle East and The Kurds" is organised in Brussels at the European Parliament building by the European Union Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC).

Any information on how to get accreditation to the conference can be obtained by writing to: [email protected]

The conference will begin on 5 December with opening remarks and greetings by Ms. Kariane ESTRHEIM, Chair EUTCC, University of Bergen, Norway; Ms. Gabi ZIMMER, MEP, Chairwoman of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left Group (GUE/NGL) in the European Parliament, Germany, Mr. Josef WEIDENHOLZER, MEP, Vice-President of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) in the European Parliament, Austria

Ana Miranda, MEP, The Greens / European Free Alliance, Spain

Opening speeches will followed and will be delivered by Margaret Owen, OBE, human rights lawyer focusing on women´s and children´s rights; Director of Widows for Peach through democracy (WPD).

The programme is as follows:

Wednesday, 5th of December 2018, 10.00-12.30

Panel I, Room ASP 3G2 (SPINELLI Building)

TURKEY AS A STATE DEPRIVED OF THE RULE OF LAW

Moderator

Mr. Akın Birdal, Former Chair of Human Rights Association, Former MP, Turkey

Ms Heike Geisweid, lawyer, MAF-DAD, Germany

THE CURRENT STATE OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN TURKEY

Ms. Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Chair of Human Rights Foundation, Co-Drafter of Istanbul Protocol of the UN, Turkey tbc

THE REALITY INSIDE TURKEY´S PRISONS AND THE INFLUENCE OF THE EMERGENCY LAW / THE IMRALI PRISON SYSTEM AS A PROTOTYPE OF THE OHAL PRISON SYSTEM

Mr. Öztürk Türkdoğan, Co-chair of Human Rights Association Turkey

ISOLATION IN IMRALI PRISON AS A METHOD OF TORTURE AND HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION AND ITS LEGAL BASIS

Ibrahim Bilmez, Asrin Law Office, Turkey

THE INFLUENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW AND INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS BODIES ON THE STRUGGLE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND LEGAL RIGHTS IN TURKEY

Mr. Thomas Schmidt, General Secretary ELDH, Germany

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE INTERNATIONAL POLITICS / HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

Mr. Gianni Tognoni, General Secretary Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, Italy

QUESTIONS & DISCUSSION WITH MODERATORS & DISCUSSANTS

Wednesday, 5th of December 2018, 15.00-17.30

Panel II, Room PHS 04 B O1 (SPINELLI Building )

LIVING SOLIDARITY

Moderator

Ms. Sarah Glynn, artist and activist, Member of Scottish Solidarity with Kurdistan, UK

YOUR FREEDOM AND MINE: ABDULLAH ÖCALAN AND THE SOLUTION TO THE CRISIS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Mr. Federico Venturini, independent researcher and activist, Member of Advisory Board of the Transnational Institute of Social Ecology, Italy

PLEASE TELL MY STORY

Mr. Joe Ryan, Chair of Westminster Justice and Peace Commission, UK

THE INTERNATIONAL STRUGGLE FOR ÖCALANS FREEDOM: THE FREEDOM FOR ÖCALAN WORLD CAMPAIGN

Ms. Clare Baker, UNITE the Union, UK

TOWARDS A NEW INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY

Mr. Thomas Jeffrey Miley, Lecturer of political sociology at the University of Cambridge, UK

THE DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN GENERAL COURT: POLITICAL AND LEGAL CONSEQUENCES

Mahmut Şakar, lawyer, MAF-DAD , Germany

QUESTIONS & DISCUSSION WITH MODERATORS & DISCUSSANTS

Thursday, 6th of December 2018, 09.00-13.00

Panel III, Room ASP 1G2 (SPINELLI Building)

THE MIDDLE EAST: REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CONFLICTS AND CONNOTATIONS

Moderator

Ms. Dersim Dağdeviren, EUTCC Board Member

Ms Gökay Akbulut, MP, Germany

TURKISH FOREIGN POLICY TOWARDS THE KURDS IN A GLOBALIZED WORLD

Mr. Kinoshita Akinobu, Japan-Kurdish Friendship Group, Japan

THE KURDISH FACTOR IN MIDDLE EASTERN GEOPOLITICS

Mr. Ahmet Yildirim, former MP, Peoples` Democratic Party, Turkey

THE ROLE OF REGIONAL POWERS IN THE CONFLICT

Mr. Bill Park, Senior Lecturer in the department of defence studies at Kings College London, UK

NATO AND THE MIDDLE EAST: CRISIS VERSUS CONSOLIDATION

Mr. Michael Gunter, EUTCC Secretary General, USA

THE KURDS AND THE MIDDLE EAST: FROM FACTOR OF INSTABILITY TO ACTOR OF STABILITY

Mr. Zubeyir Aydar, Kurdistan National Congress (KNK), Belgium

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN´S STRUGGLE: CHALLENGES AND TASKS

Ms. Eleonora Forenza, MEP, Italy

QUESTIONS & DISCUSSION WITH MODERATORS & DISCUSSANTS

Thursday, 6th of December 2018, 14.30-16.30

Panel IV, Room ASP 1G2 (SPINELLI Building)

THE MIDDLE EAST: PERSPECTIVES AND SOLUTIONS

Moderator

Ms. Deniz Yonucu, Social anthropologist, LMU Munih, Germany

THE DEMOCRATIC FEDERATION OF NORTH-SYRIA: AN OASIS OF DEMOCRACY IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Mr. Michael Knapp, Historian, Berlin, Germany

LIVING DEMOCRATIC AUTONOMY: MAXMUR – HOW A REFUGEE CAMP BECAME A LIVING DEMOCRACY

Ms. Kariane Westrheim, University of Bergen,Chair of EUTCC, Norway

BETWEEN EXTINCTION AND POLITICAL CO-DETERMINATION – THE ETHNICAL AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Mr. Simon Jacob, Central Council of Oriental Christians, Germany

ON THE RUINS OF KOBANE: INTERNATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY IN THE RECONSTRUCTION OF ROJAVA AND THE RECOGNITION OF THE DEMOCRATIC FEDERATION OF NORTHERN SYRIA

Mr. Jonathan Spyer, Director of the Rubin Center, Israel

THE KURDISH QUESTION AND THE EUROPEAN UNION: DELISTING OF PKK FROM THE TERRORIST

Ms. Marie-Christine Vergiat, MEP, France

THE MIDDLE EAST: GLOBAL CHALLENGES NEEDS GLOBAL SOLUTIONS - THE NEED FOR AN INTERNATIONAL DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE

Ms. Nilufer Koc, Co-Chair of KNK, Belgium

QUESTIONS & DISCUSSION WITH MODERATORS & DISCUSSANTS

Thursday, 6th of December 2018, 16.30-18.00

Panel V, Room ASP 1G2 (SPINELLI Building)

PEACE POWER IN THE MIDDLE EAST: WOMEN

Moderators

Ms. Julie Ward, MEP, UK tbc

Ms. Münevver Azizoglu-Bazan, University of Bremen, Germany

GENDER PERSPECTIVES FOR THE MIDDLE EAST

Ms. Mechtild Exo, University of Emden/Leer, Germany

DEMOCRATIC AUTONOMY AND WOMEN’S LIBERATION IN ROJAVA

Ilham Ehmed, Democratic Federation of Northern Syria

WOMEN AS THE MOTOR OF A FREE SOCIETY

Ms. Marlene Schäfers, University of Ghent, Belgium

DEMOCRATIC CONFEDERALISM AND THE STRUGGLE AGAINST PATRIARCHY

Döne Güzel, Kurdish Women's Movement in Europe

QUESTIONS & DISCUSSION WITH MODERATORS & DISCUSSANTS

Thursday, 6th of December 2018, 18.00-18.30

Panel VI, Room ASP 1G2 (SPINELLI Building)

CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND FINAL RESOLUTION