The historic leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) guerrillas, Abdullah Ocalan, has appealed Thursday to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in his case against Greece for allegedly violating his right to seek asylum in 1999 when he was detained at the country’s embassy in Kenya.
The application, which has been accepted by the court, relates to his arrival on Greek soil in 1998, his asylum application and subsequent arrest, and points to Turkish intelligence agents as being responsible for his «abduction» in Kenya and subsequent imprisonment for terrorism.
He further accuses Greece of not even processing his asylum application and insists that his arrest «was illegal» since he was not given the opportunity to defend his rights before the Greek judiciary but was immediately handed over to Turkey for extradition.
According to his lawyers, Greece violated the European Convention on Human Rights twenty years ago when it proceeded with his arrest. Diplomatic sources have indicated to the newspaper ‘Kathimerini’ that Athens will respond following the procedure established by the ECHR.
Öçalan, founder of the PKK – considered a terrorist organization by the Turkish government – was sentenced in 1999 to life imprisonment for terrorism and separatism. However, he continues to advocate for the independence of Kurdistan, a territory that extends over parts of Syria, Iraq, Iran and Turkey.
