ISTANBUL - The family and trustee of PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan applied to Bursa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and İmralı Prison Directorate for a visit.

 

Mehmet Öcalan, the brother of PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan who were held under severe isolation conditions in İmralı Type F High Security Prison, his trustee Mazlum Dinç and other prisoners Ömer Hayri Konar's brother Ali Konar, Hamili Yıldırım's brother Polat Yıldırım and Veysi Aktaş' sister Melihe Çetin applied to the Bursa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office with a request for a meeting.

 

Families also applied to the Directorate of Imrali Type F High Security Closed Penal Institution through the Bursa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office

 

VISITS ARE PREVENTED

 

There is no positive or negative response to the applications made by attorneys twice a week to meet with their client Öcalan. Attorneys applied for an "immediate meeting" to the Bursa Criminal Execution Judge on November 22, 2021.

The judgeship rejected the application, citing the 6-month ban on attorneys to visit Öcalan on October 12, 2021, and the 3-month ban on family visits on August 18. However, the attorneys were not informed about the decisions that justified the ban.

 

3 MONTHS FAMILY VISIT BAN

 

Responding on 29 March, the judgeship rejected the application. In the rejection decision of the judgeship, it was stated that "The request was rejected on the grounds that all applicants were deprived of family visits for 3 months as a disciplinary penalty on February 3, 2022 by the Presidency of the Imrali Disciplinary Board and it became final on February 21."

 

Asrın Law Office's lawyers applied for a re-visit after the 3-month family visit ban on Öcalan and other prisoners ended on June 7 and demanded that all obstacles to family visits be removed and that new disciplinary sanctions.

 

APPLICATION WAS REJECTED

 

The judge rejected the attoneys' application. The judge gave the reason for the rejection decision that "the disciplinary punishments are still continuing". The attorneys then appealed to the Bursa 1st High Criminal Court on June 15.

 

THE ATTORNEYS BROUGHT OBSTACLES TO AYM

 

The attorneys brought the prevention of family visits to the Constitutional Court (AYM) with "unlawful" disciplinary penalties on May 12, following the refusal of the judge. In their application to the Constitutional Court, the attorneys drew attention to "incommunicado", which is the absolute state of lack of communication, and demanded that not being informed is torture, that the right to respect for family and private life, the right to defense and fair trial, and the right to an effective remedy are violated.

 

ATTORNEYS LAST MET ÖCALAN IN 2019

 

Rezan Sarıca and Newroz Uysal, one of Öcalan's attorneys, last met their clients on May 2-22, June 12-18 and August 7, 2019, after 8 years. Öcalan was granted the right to speak by phone for the first time on April 27, 2020.