Cengiz Çiçek

In 2009, at the time when Abdullah Öcalan's detention conditions were alleviated, he was his attorney.^[2] In 2011 he was arrested together with 45 other lawyers, who represented Öcalan.^[3] In March 2014 he was released with nine other lawyers who were investigated of representing Öcalan and activities concerning the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK).^[4]

Cengiz Çiçek began his political career with the People's Democracy Party (HADEP) and was also the co-speaker of the Peoples' Democratic Congress (HDK).^[1] In 2018, when he was the co-chair of Istanbul branch of the HDP, he was arrested for six days over terror related charges.^[5] In the parliamentary elections of May 2023, he was elected to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey representing Istanbul for the (YSP).^[6]

Çiçek is against the closure of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), calling it a judicial sabotage that the HDP had to take part in the elections under the umbrella of the YSP,^[7] and supports the Saturday Mothers, a Turkish human rights organization.^[8][9]