On August 21, 2024, the Parole Board denied the freedom of Ilham Sami Çomak who has dedicated his life to poetry, was jailed after confessing under torture to setting a fire during a protest in Turkey when he was 21 years old. This charge was declared bogus by the European Court of Human Rights, which ordered a retrial. Set for release after 30 years, Ilham was denied his freedom by the Parole Board under the pretense that he has not shown enough remorse, ignoring his exemplary behavior and his beautiful poetry, which concentrates on the memories of his childhood. PEN Norway states, “We note that it is usual to release prisoners once a retrial has been ordered and we question how Çomak was kept in prison for eight years after the (sic) ECtHR had ruled that such a retrial was necessary.”
Even though this is a painful decision, we know that Ilham has a powerful capacity for resilience, and we remember his hope in one of his beautiful letters to all of us.
“It is not long, now, until I will be united once again with freedom and with you, my friends. I have missed life so much. I urgently want to take part in and be among all of the wonderful and beautiful things about life. For years now I have been pondering on what my first words will be on the day that I am let out. And they are: It’s done. And so, I have come. / May all the scurrilous winds be silent!” (Free Ilham Sami Çomak poetry translated by Caroline Stockford, Balkan Literary Herald)[1]
Now, the Board meets every three months, and it’s important we continue to increase the pressure so they may release Ilham soon.
There are many ways to support Ilham’s freedom campaign, like writing to him, organizing poetry readings in his name, inviting him to poetry festivals (he has a travel ban), and reading his poetry translated by Caroline Stockford, who gave permission for it to be used for the purposes of Ilham’s freedom. Be sure to always use the hashtags #freethepoet, #freeilhancomak, #İlhanÇomakiçinAdalet, and #ilhancomak. His Twitter handle is @ilhan_comak.
PEN Norway shared with us a postcard model to write to Ilham to show solidarity.
İlhan Sami Çomak
Silivri 5 No.lu L Tipi Kapalı Cezaevi
C12 Silivri
İstanbul
Turkey
[1] Balkan Literary Herald, White Library, Special Edition. Copyright © 2024 by Caroline Stockford, Balkan Literary Herald, and Armãn PEN.
Sample message below:
Dear Ilhan,
We hope that, soon, you will be reunited with your freedom and that it will be a new start for you and your poetry. We send you our respect and the love of friendship. Stay strong, we send you greetings from your PEN family. You are never alone.
With solidarity,
Sevgili İlhan,
Çok yakında özgürlüğünüze kavuşacağınız, siz ve şiiriniz için yeni bir başlangıcın olmasını ümit ediyoruz. Size, sonsuz saygılarımızı ve dostça sevgilerimizi ileriyoruz. Güçlü kalın, PEN’deki aileniz olarak size selamlıyoruz! Asla yalnız değilsiniz.
Dayanışmayla,
If you want to read the interviews of Pressenza with Ilham Sami Çomak and other articles click here
