International Initiative
Freedom for Ocalan – Peace in Kurdistan
P.O. Box 100511, D-50445 Koeln
Telephone: +49 221 130 15 59
Fax: +49 221 139 30 71
E-Mail: info@freedom-for-ocalan.com
Url: www.freedom-for-ocalan.com

Cologne, 25 August 2006

Press statement:
Lift the Isolation! Open up the doors to peace!

In the last few days military violence in Turkey has been escalating. The Turkish army is conducting military operations all over Kurdistan. For the first time in seven years, the Turkish Air Force bombed Iraqi territory, which is a clear breach of international law. Turkish and Iranian artillery have been jointly shelling civilian settlement areas for weeks now.

At the same time Turkey witnesses a discussion of a new kind. For the first time the possibility of negotiations with the Kurdish side is being discussed openly. The war-mongers front is showing fissures. More and more people become aware that Turkey might ruin itself and the whole region through this war.

Abdullah Ocalan, one of the most significant political representatives of the Kurdish side, is imprisoned in an island and under solitary confinement in Turkey. According to the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights, the trial was not independent and impartial and that he must be retried. For the last one and a half years Turkey has been blocking the execution of this judgment. This shows, how far Turkey is from rule of law and of European juridical standards.

Nevertheless the Kurdish leader declared on the 9th of August 2006 that he might call on the Kurdish guerrilla forces for a truce again if Turkey seriously demonstrates its commitment to peace. The reaction of the state was characteristic: Ocalan's isolation conditions -unparalleled in anyway- have been aggravated once again through a three week cell confinement penalty. Cell confinement as a punishment for a call for peace and understanding; this is the classic reaction of the warmongers in Turkey. This kind of provocation is meant to obstruct every road to peace, to nip every voice of peace in the bud. It is obvious that there are still military commanders and politicians who are doing everything they can to sabotage peace.

But time is running out for the warmongers. More and more people become aware that only dialog can bring about a perspective for peace and a democratic solution of the Kurdish question. And more and more people want this dialog and peace

The Kurdish side has proved several times that they are ready to negotiate. Several ceasefires, which would not have been possible without Ocalan, speak for themselves. Therefore the Kurds see him as a guarantor for a fair peace. They are waiting for a signal from the other side. The solitary confinement of Mr. Ocalan has to be lifted immediately. Now it is Turkey's turn. Turkey has to make a clear gesture now as to whether she wants to end the bloodshed and make steps towards a political solution.

We also call on the international community to stand up for a resolution and against the deliberate arrest of Kurdish politicians as seen recently done by Germany and Netherlands.