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, 8 March 2002

Press Release

Ocalan's Lawyers may face up to seven years of imprisonment

The memory of the unpleasant scenes at the dock of the small Turkish port Mudanya is still fresh. In May 1999 a crowd fanaticised by Turkish media reports tried to lynch Abdullah Ocalan's lawyers when they returned from their client's trial on Imrali, the prison island in the Sea of Marmara.
It took them a lot of trouble and the help of armed guards befor they got away there eventually. This incident is also subject of Abdullah Ocalan's complaint with the European Court of Human Rights. Among other things this complaint is concerned with the obstruction of his attorneys. After this incident which caused massive protests, Mr. Ocalan's lawyers then were able to proceed with their legal workings rather untroubled by any interference on the part of the authorities. This seems to change.

Since yesterday Aysel Tugluk, Mahmut Sakar and Irfan Dundar stand in court before the 6th chamber of the State Security Court in Istanbul. They may face up to seven years of detention.
One month ago Aysel Tugluk had already received a sentence of three and a half years for addressing her client as "Mr." Ocalan during a panel discussion. This judgement is not valid yet. In the current proceedings the prosecution wants the attorneys to be sentenced for supporting a terror organisation by circulating statements made by their client.
So far, however, even the Turkish Minister of Justice, Sammy Turk, could not detect any illegal contents in these statements.. The process against Abdullah Ocalan's legal representatives coincides with the current tough discussion on the abolition of the death penalty. In particular the right-wing extremist Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) would like to see the president of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) hang. This, however, would lead inevitably to a new outbreak of the Turkish-Kurdish war. Meanwhile the European Court of Human Rights has set the beginning of the main hearing in the case of Abdullah Ocalan for the autumn 2002. The current trial staged against Mr. Ocalan's lawyers is a clear violation of the defendant's right to unrestricted advocacy. A condemnation of Mr. Ocalan's chief lawyers would indirectly affect the course of his complaint with the European Court of Human Rights.

The International Initiative condemns this attack on the right to unrestricted advocacy. We call on the bar associations to remonstrate against this intimidation attempt by the Turkish authorities. Furthermore we invite them to approach the Turkish authorities on behalf of their colleagues in Turkey.