Lawyers to visit Öcalan on İmralı in December

ANKARA – Hürriyet

The lawyers’ visit is decided to take place on December 2013, during the first anniversary of the official beginning of meetings with Öcalan Hürriyet Photo

The imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan will be visited by his lawyers next month, while also having more visitors in the following months, including a group of journalists and even some senior PKK members from Qandil.

The government has offered the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) for one of their deputies who, is also lawyer to visit Öcalan. After the BDP declined to accept this offer, the government allowed at least two lawyers to visit Öcalan with the condition that none of these lawyers would be from the Asrın Law office, which is known for its links to the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), the urban wing of the PKK.

The lawyers’ visit is decided to take place on December 2013, during the first anniversary of the official beginning of meetings with Öcalan. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced meetings with Öcalan started with a television program on Dec. 28, 2012.

A group from the Wise Persons Group, who will be determined by Erdoğan, will also visit Öcalan in İmralı before the end of 2013. One out of seven groups of the Wise Person’s Group will be visiting Öcalan. Also a group of editor-in-chiefs will visit İmralı before the end of this year.

Meanwhile, a senior member of the KCK may visit Öcalan in İmralı following the other visits. According to the information reflected via the Ankara corridors, the government opened the door slightly to such a meeting in its messages sent to İmralı and the BDP saying this can come to the agenda after the local elections.

Meanwhile, the government is also working on the release of 160 ill people in jail due to the KCK cases.