International Initiative
Freedom for Ocalan – Peace in Kurdistan
P.O. Box 100511, D-50445 Koeln
E-Mail: info@freedom-for-ocalan.com
Url: www.freedom-for-ocalan.com

Cologne, 5 February 2003

INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVE BRIEFINGS:
European Democratic Lawyers call for an end of Ocalan’s solitary confinement

Today again Abdulah Ocalan’s lawyers were not allowed to see their client. Again bad weather was used as a pretext. He now has been completely isolated for more than ten weeks.
We therefore document a motion by the European Lawyer Federation (AED) that was presented on February, 1st in Rome:

(...)

The Commission Défense de la Défense of the European Lawyer Federation AED (European Democratic Lawyers) is alarmed about the fact, that our Turkish colleagues, who are working as defence counsels for Mr. Abdullah Öcalan, are unable to perform their professional duties.

As we learn from our Turkish colleagues, Mr. Öcalan is in solitary confinement under conditions of severe isolation on the prison-island of Imrali since his illegal seizure in Kenya and transfer to Turkey on February 15, 1999.

According to his lawyers, Mr. Öcalan has not had any outside contact for more than eight weeks. For two months there have been absolutely no visitors, neither lawyers nor relatives. The last meeting with his lawyers was on November 27, 2002.

All these weeks, the lawyers of Mr. Öcalan travelled in vain to the harbour of Mudanya, in order to cross over to Imrali. All these weeks, the authorities denied them visiting their client, claiming there would be bad weather conditions or heavy fog.

This is why, in particular, the lawyers of Mr. Öcalan are not able to provide appropriate legal assistance, since there are several cases pending, as well in Turkey as before the ECHR in Strasbourg. As the visits of our colleagues could have carried out easily on another day - weather conditions having changed - we must state, that the authorities are barring the lawyers of Mr. Öcalan from any contact to their client.

This leads to a complete isolation of Mr Öcalan from the outside world. Considering the isolation as kind of torture, isolation has serious physical, psychological and mental affects on those, who have to live alone for a long time. The anti-torture committee (CPT) of the European Council recently also requested Turkey to lift this isolation.

Before November 2002 - under circumstances, which we can not define as "normal", - the lawyers of Mr. Öcalan at least had been permitted to visit him once a week, on Wednesdays, for one hour.

To our opinion, such restriction, especially the current exclusion in the Defence Lawyers access to Mr. Öcalan is not tolerable. Its impossible for them, to consult with their client in a normal and effective manner.

This situation, caused by the authorities of the Turkish Armed Forces, as the prison-island lies within a restricted military zone in the Sea of Marmara - infringes the principles of a constitutional state, violates the EHRC and forms finally a violation of the UN Principles on the Role of Lawyers.

Article 16 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers states, "Governments shall ensure, that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference." These Basic Principles were adopted by the Eighth UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders in 1990 in Havana and welcomed by the General Assembly of the UN, including the Turkish government. They are designed to set guidelines for the proper role of lawyers.

This is why the Commission Défense de la Défense of the European Lawyer Federation AED (European Democratic Lawyers) claims, that

1) military influence over the prison-island must be removed in order to ensure the separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary, as required in the Turkish Constitution.

2) the lawyers representing Mr. Öcalan have to have free access to their client.

Rome, February 1st, 2003 The Commission Défense de la Défense of the European Lawyer Federation AED (European Democratic Lawyers)

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Constituée en octobre 1987 sous forme d'une confédération de syndicats et d'organisations d'avocats ayant un même idéal démocratique, l'association "AVOCATS EUROPEENS DEMOCRATES" (A.E.D.) a vu ses statuts définitivement adoptés, à Strasbourg, le 21 avril 1990 ( enregistrés au registre des associations du Tribunal d'Instance de Colmar en date du 4 juillet 1990).

Dès sa création l'association a regroupé sept organisations d'avocats :

- Le Syndicat des Avocats de France (S.A.F.) - La Confederazione Nazionale Delle Associazoni Sindicali Forensi d'Italia (Italie)
- Le Republikanischer Anwältinnen und Anwälteverein (RAV - Allemagne).
- L'Associació Catalana per a la Defensa dels Drets Humans (Barcelone)
- De Vereniging Sociale Advokatuur Nederland (VSAN)
- Le Syndicat des Avocats pour la Démocratie (S.A.D. - Belgique).
- L'Asociación Libre Abogados (ALA - Madrid).
- L'Euskal Herriko Abokatuen Elkartea (ESKUBIDEAK - Pays Basque).

L'A.E.D. entend défendre les droits des citoyens en préservant l'indépendance des avocats à l'égard de tout pouvoir, qu'il soit politique, social, économique ou ordinal.

En tant qu'organisation professionnelle, l'A.E.D. s'est donné pour objet, sur le plan international, de faire respecter les droits de la défense et notamment de préserver l'intégrité physique ainsi que les libertés politiques et économiques des avocats.