death_penalty_new.qxd 02-08-27 12:57 Page 53 TURKEY INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS Juvenile Offenders: There is no explicit prohibition on sentencing persons who were below the age of 18 at the time when the crime was committed to the death penalty. However, the heaviest penalty foreseen for persons who were below the age of 18 at the time the crime was committed is 15 years imprisonment202. Pregnant women: The law does not prohibit sentencing pregnant women to death. However, it does prohibit the execution of pregnant women before they have given birth203. Clemency/Pardon: The Penal Code makes provision for the commutation of death sentences204. According to the Constitution, the President is empowered to commute or lift death sentences on the grounds of age, disability or ill health205. ADDITIONAL COMMENTS Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, was sentenced to death on 29 June 1999. He was found guilty of treason and separatism. The sentence, which was confirmed by the Turkish Appeal Court in November 1999, is being held at the Office of the Prime Minister. Öcalan brought an application before the European Court of Human Rights claiming that the use of the death penalty would violate his right to life206. The application has been declared admissible and is due to be heard on its merits at some point this year207. 202 203 204 205 206 207 Article 54(2) of the Penal Code. Article 2(3) of the Law on Execution of Penalties. Article 59 of the Penal Code. Article 104 of the Constitution. The European Court of Human Rights will consider whether there would be a violation of the right to life per se, and also whether the right to life would be violated when taken together with violations of the right to due process and fair trial. Öcalan v. Turkey, Application Number 00046221/99. 53