Ömer Öcalan (born 1987) is a former politician of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and a current member of the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( ), usually referred to simply as the GNAT or TBMM, also referred to as , in Turkish, is the Unicameralism, unicameral Turkey, Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by ...

representing

Şanlıurfa Urfa, officially called Şanlıurfa (), is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of Şanlıurfa Province. The city was known as Edessa from Hellenistic times and into Christian times. Urfa is situated on a plain about east of the Eup ...

for the

Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (; , abbreviated as DEM Party) is a pro- Kurdish political party in Turkey. It is the legal successor of the Green Left Party and with the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) handing over its work to this ...

(DEM).

Early life and education

He was born in 1987 in Halfeti,

, as a son of Mehmet and Fehime Öcalan. His uncle is

Abdullah Öcalan Abdullah Öcalan ( ; ; born 4 April 1948 or 1949), also known as Apo (short for Abdullah in Turkish; Kurdish for "uncle"), is a founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Öcalan was based in Syria from 1979 to 1998. He ...

, the founder of the

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

(PKK). He spent a large part of his youth in

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

, where he graduated from high school. It was at this time he was detained to first time for a short while. After his release he studied journalism at

Ankara University Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...

. In 2012 he wanted to study politics at the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; ) in Lausanne, Switzerland, was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second-oldest in Switzerland, and one of the oldest universities ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, but had to abandon due to economic reasons.

Political career

As he returned from Lausanne, he settled in Mardin, where his wife worked at the Municipality. In 2014 he assumed as the co-chair of the

Democratic Regions Party The Democratic Regions Party (, DBP, , PHD) is a Kurdish political party in the Republic of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called Ea ...

(DBP) in

Mardin Mardin (; ; romanized: ''Mārdīn''; ; ) is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqids, Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris ...

, a post he held until 2016. During his tenure, he was arrested with another five in April 2016, due to an investigation on terror related charges. He was released a few months later in June of the same year. In the parliamentary elections of June 2018 he was elected to parliament for the HDP representing Sanilurfa. On the 17 March 2021, the Turkish state prosecutor before the

Court of Cassation A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case; they only interpret the relevant law. In this, they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In ...

Bekir Şahin Bekir Şahin (born 1 March 1960, Mecitözü, Turkey) is a jurist, former judge and the current State Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation in Turkey. Education He was educated at the Imam Hatip school and studied law at the Dokuz Eylül Univer ...

filed a lawsuit before the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

demanding for him and 686 other HDP politicians a five-year ban for political activities. The lawsuit was filed together with the request for a closure of the HDP due to their politicians alleged participation in terrorist activities. In the parliamentary elections of May 2023, he was re-elected to the Turkish parliament representing Şanlıurfa for the DEM.

Views

As a deputy he opposed the implementation of a law aimed at lowering the risk of contagion with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

in prisons, which released many prisoners but excluded the HDP politicians. According to him, Kurdish politicians are imprisoned for speaking about "democracy, equality, peace and freedoms". He took part in the protests against the dismissal of the HDP mayors in the south eastern part of

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, which were replaced by state appointed acting mayors.

Personal life

Due to being Abdullah Öcalan's nephew, he was not allowed to visit his relatives in Ömerli, the birth place of Abdullah on 4 April 2018, the birthday of his uncle. Ömer Öcalan is married and has two children.

References

{{Authority control 1987 births Living people Democratic Regions Party politicians Members of the 27th Parliament of Turkey Members of the 28th Parliament of Turkey Öcalan family Peoples' Democratic Party (Turkey) politicians People from Halfeti Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party politicians Turkish Kurdish politicians