DÎLOK — Esmer Özer, a member of the Lawyers for Democracy Platform, said sentencing a person to spend their entire life in prison constitutes a “violation of the right to life,” adding that the “right to hope” must be recognised for everyone and supported by legal reforms.

 

Esmer Özer, a lawyer with the Dîlok (Antep) Bar Association’s Lawyers for Democracy Platform, said vague provisions in judicial reform packages and the failure to implement rulings by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) pose a major obstacle to democratic politics. She added that the current execution system has turned into a “practice of retaliation.”

 

Esmer Özer said citizens must be able to clearly understand from the law which actions constitute crimes, noting that Turkish penal laws contain ambiguous concepts that are used by the state. “There is a need for legislation that is clearly defined, aligned with international law and democratic principles, and that upholds the principle of the social state,” she said.

 

Esmer Özer also criticised administrative observation boards introduced under execution laws, saying they obstruct prisoner releases and lead to rights violations. She said: “The evaluation procedures of these boards are not based on clear criteria; they are entirely arbitrary. Prisoners are asked questions such as ‘Do you regret it?’ which may amount to criminalising thought. These practices must be abolished, and laws must not remain only on paper but be implemented in practice.”

 

Referring to ECHR rulings on the “right to hope,” Esmer Özer said sentencing a person to die in prison is effectively no different from the death penalty. “The right to hope must be recognised for all, and legal arrangements must be made accordingly. Serious violations are taking place across Turkey. The situations faced by figures such as Can Atalay and Selçuk Kozağaçlı are also part of this picture,” she said.

 

Esmer Özer added that if claims of democratisation are to be credible, practices in prisons must first come to an end, arguing that the judiciary is being used as an instrument of repression. She stressed: “People who represent the Kurdish movement’s tradition of struggle must be addressed from a fundamental human rights perspective, and violations must be remedied immediately.”

 

She also recalled that under Article 90 of the constitution, international law takes precedence over domestic law, adding that ECHR rulings have been systematically ignored in recent years. “This unlawful approach must be abandoned,” she said.