The International Initiative and Peace in Kurdistan Campaign have launched an urgent petition to send to the CPT (Committee for Prevention of Torture).

“We, the Kurdish communities in Europe and their friends, have no information about Mr. Ocalan since September 2016 - said the appeal - and, therefore, we are deeply concerned about this. Visit applications made by lawyers and family members have all unlawfully been rejected by the Turkish authorities.”

The appeal continues: “In order to break the state of incommunicado imposed on Mr. Ocalan, fifteen Kurdish political activists, politicians and academics launched on 17th December an indefinite hunger strike in Strasbourg. They demand that Mr. Ocalan’s family and lawyers be allowed to visit him, or, CPT send a delegation to pay a visit to Kurdish leader. They also request the Council of Europe to pay attention to this crucial matter, urge CPT play its role, and pressure the Turkish authorities to allow family and lawyers’ visit.” 

The petition ends with these words: “I declare the demand of these strikers as mine and urgently call upon your excellency to take necessary measures in this respect.” 

The petition can be signed here: https://www.change.org/p/european-committee-for-the-prevention-of-torture-cpt-we-want-cpt-to-visit-mr-ocalan-at-imrali-prison?utm_campaign=fb_dialog&utm_medium=email&utm_source=signature_receipt#