Following the launch of the sit-in near the offices of the Council of Europe (CoE) and the Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) with the demand that the CPT urgently send a committee to inspect Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan’s situation, hundreds walked to the CPT office to voice their demand officially.

As the demonstration in front of the CPT continued, a 5-person delegation made up of HDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) MP Tuğba Hezer, European Kurdish Democratic Society Congress (KCDK-E) Co-chair Yüksel Koç and representatives of PUK (Patriotic Union of Kurdistan) and Gorran (Change) Movement met with CPT officials.

Speaking after the meeting that lasted an hour, KCDK-E Co-chair Yüksel Koç said they talked to two officials from the CPT on behalf of 63 institutions that represent Kurds, Turks, Assyrians and Syriacs among others.

Koç said they told the officials that CPT supported AKP’s dirty policies with its current attitude on the matter, recalling that Öcalan has been denied meeting with his family and lawyers for a very long time.

According to Koç, CPT officials stated that the CPT report on the latest visit to İmralı was not made public due to the Turkish government’s denial of permission.

In response to the demand for immediate access to Öcalan, CPT officials only stated that they are following up on the matter, refusing to give a clear answer on the demonstrators’ request to send a committee to İmralı.

KCDK-E Co-chair said they conveyed their demand to CPT officials in the name of 63 institutions, stressing that their sit-in demonstration will continue until a delegation goes to İmralı to inspect the Kurdish leader’s conditions.

HDP MP Tuğba Hezer also underlined that they will continue their action until they obtain clear information about the situation of the Kurdish leader following the recent speculations on Turkish media regarding his health.