Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan has not been able to meet with his lawyers since 27 July 2011. Since 5 April 2015 he has not been able to meet the so called Imralı delegation (composed by HDP deputies).

Furthermore, Öcalan last met with a family member in September 2016.

No first hand information is given about his situation. The requests for visiting Öcalan made by his lawyers, as well as Kurdish politicians, have been rejected by Turkish authorities, for various reasons.

It was to draw attention to his situation and more specifically to demand the end of the isolation regime imposed on him, that DTK co-chair and HDP Hakkari deputy Leyla Güven began an indefinite hunger strike in Diyarbakır Prison.

Speaking to ANF on the isolation regime imposed on Kurdish People's Leader Öcalan, HDP Amed MP Saliha Aydeniz said that since 1999 the isolation in Imralı has been going on in a systematic way.

Isolation, Aydeniz pointed out, is the continuation of the international conspiracy and the Imrali system has no equals anywhere in the world. “In Turkey new special laws have been put into practice in the person of Öcalan. The European Court of Human Rights’ ruling, the CPT’s attitude and the United States' decision to put a bounty on three PKK senior figures, are all part of the international conspiracy.”

Aydeniz added that clashes and conflicts in the Middle East showed that there is a third world war in the region. “The third world war - the Amed MP said - is waged out especially against the Kurds. The isolation imposed on Öcalan, the occupation of Afrin and Kirkuk, the referendum in South Kurdistan, all ultimately benefit certain forces. The international public opinion has been silent on the occupation and massacres in Afrin, which proves that there is an international conspiracy against the Kurds.”

We stand by Leyla Güven

Underlining that Leyla Güven is on hunger strike for 37 days, Aydeniz added: “Leyla Güven is also a Kurdish politician who has been on the hunger strike for 37 days. A representative of the people. We stand by her side and we will attain freedom through struggle. As long as isolation is not lifted we will continue our actions".

Recalling that in Öcalan’s perspective, “the society cannot be emancipated without women being free”, Aydeniz said: “The place of women in society is very important. We saw this in Rojava. The women were fighting on war fronts, while on the other hand, they were involved in the construction of new life. The Kurdish women scared the invaders, and they aggravated isolation."