TURKEY'S hopes of an early start to negotiations on EU membership are thrown into doubt by its continued mistreatment of Kurdish separatist leader Abdullah Ocalan, Euro MP Jean Lambert has warned.
Mr Ocalan's life is in danger after three years of human rights abuses since he was placed in solitary confinement on a remote island off the Turkish coast following his arrest in 1999, according to Mrs Lambert, a member of the European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee.
"If the new Turkish government is serious about joining the EU it must demonstrate its commitment to human rights and the rule of law - not just to other European states but to its own citizens.
"More importantly, Turkey must be able to demonstrate its political stability," said Mrs Lambert, Green Party MEP for London.
"If Abdullah Ocalan dies in custody as a result of poor prison conditions or denial of essential medical care, relations between the Kurds and the Government will be set back years."
Mr Ocalan, leader of the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), was arrested in 1999. Though he has been regularly denied visits from family members, lawyers and supporters, NGOs and UN Human Rights monitors who have been granted access have expressed concern at recent serious deterioration in his health and prison conditions.
Mrs Lambert said: "Abdullah Ocalan remains in solitary confinement in appalling conditions. Recent reports found that his 'prison yard' is a space just 4 meters high by 4.5 meters wide1. It appears that he is repeatedly denied access to family members and his lawyers, and that he is receiving insufficient medical treatment for his needs.
"Though his treatment is appalling and in violation of both Turkish law and the European Convention of Human Rights, requests for improved conditions have been met with silence from the Turkish authorities.
"A change for the better in Abdullah Ocalan's living conditions would be a positive signal from the new Turkish government concerning a general improvement in prison conditions overall. It would also increase confidence in the Kurdish population that the new government is serious about developing lasting peace and implementing human rights legislation - an essential first step before EU membership negotiations can begin."
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Note to Editors:
As found by the Committee for the Prevention of Torture during its recent visit to Mr Ocalan's cell on Imrali Island.