DİREN ENGÎZEK

Qamishlo- Yesterday, the 2nd Conference of the Lawyers’ Union of Cizre Region in North and East Syria kicked off at Muhammed Şexo Culture and Art Center in Qamishlo. A Total of 72 delegations from the Movement for a Democratic Society (TEV-DEM), Martyrs' Families Union and lawyers of six bar associations in North and East Syria have attended the two-day conference. The main agendas of the conference are the lifting of the isolation imposed on Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan and the prosecution of ISIS members in North and East Syria.

‘His thoughts will be the key to the solution of the crisis’

In an interview with NuJINHA, Abid Osman, Co-chair of the Lawyers’ Union of Cizre Region in North and East Syria, said they would discuss the isolation imposed on Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan at the conference. “On February 16, 1999, leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) was kidnapped. Many states with their dirty policies took part in this international conspiracy. They handed over leader Apo to Turkey. Leader Apo faced an unjust trial. They (Turkish authorities) first aimed to sentence leader Apo to the death penalty; however, they could not sentence him to death thanks to the struggle of the Kurdish people and lawyers. But he was sentenced to an aggravated life sentence.”

Emphasizing that the thoughts of Abdullah Öcalan “will be the key to the solution of the crisis in the Middle East,” Abid Osman said, “The Turkish state has imposed an isolation on leader Apo because it knows that his ideology and thoughts affect the Kurdish people, the people of the Middle East and the people all around the world.”

‘The Turkish state violates the international law’

Abid Osman underlined that the Turkish courts violate international conventions and law by imposing an isolation on Abdullah Öcalan. “The Turkish state also violates its own laws,” said Abid Osman, recalling the visit of a delegation of the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to the Imrali prison. “The Turkish state has not allowed leader Apo to see his family members, lawyers and doctor. Leader Apo has been deprived of his rights for years.”

The lawyers of North and East Syria formed the Syrian Lawyers’ Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan Initiative. “The initiative has organized joint workshops and launched petitions with many lawyers in Southern Kurdistan, Africa and Asia. We, as lawyers, are ready to take all legal steps to lift the isolation imposed on leader Apo.