The family and lawyer of Kurdish singer Nûdem Durak, who has spent more than 11 years in prison under sentences totaling 19-and-a-half years, have renewed calls for her release over worsening health problems, the Bianet news website reported.
Durak has been held at the Erzincan Women’s Closed Prison since being sentenced in two separate cases on charges of membership in a terrorist organization. Reporting on her case has identified the organization at the center of the accusations as the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), an armed Kurdish group designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.
Her lawyer, Ali Çimen, said the prosecutions were based largely on Durak’s artistic activities, including her work as a music instructor at the Mem û Zîn Cultural Center in Cizre, a predominantly Kurdish town in southeastern Turkey’s Şırnak province, where she taught Kurdish music.
The Mem û Zîn center was a Kurdish cultural institution offering activities including music and dance.
Çimen said Durak’s work as a Kurdish musician and music instructor was treated as evidence that she belonged to a terrorist organization. Her convictions, however, were formally for membership in such an organization rather than for singing or teaching Kurdish music.
A court in Diyarbakır sentenced Durak to 10 years in prison in one case, while she was convicted on the same charge in a separate trial in Kahramanmaraş, bringing her total sentence to 19 years, six months. Bianet reported that Durak has been imprisoned since April 22, 2015.
An international campaign seeking her release has said prosecutors also accused her of participating in violent demonstrations and promoting the PKK, allegations that Durak and her advocates dispute.
Çimen also disputed the basis of the second conviction, saying the case portrayed Durak as having been detained at a house where she was not present. Bianet did not provide the court judgments or an account from prosecutors addressing his claim.
Durak has toxic goiter and osteoporosis, and her conditions have worsened in prison, according to her family and lawyer. Her brother, Ahmet Durak, said she is receiving treatment but that her illnesses continue to cause significant problems under prison conditions. Bianet reported that she is also at risk of losing her voice.
Çimen said requests to postpone the execution of Durak’s sentence because of her health had been rejected. He said an application alleging rights violations was also rejected by Turkey’s Constitutional Court and that the case was subsequently taken to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).
The lawyer said a guitar Durak used to continue making music in prison was broken and that prison authorities did not give her a replacement that was sent to her. Despite the restrictions and her health problems, she continues to write Kurdish poems and songs, her brother said.
Ahmet Durak said the distance between Erzincan and the family’s home has also made regular prison visits difficult. He said international and local solidarity campaigns involving artists and activists had helped Durak and her family feel less isolated but that they had seen no action by Turkish authorities in response to the campaigns.
