The protest was announced in the courtroom by and was joined by other leading figures of the PKK who were incarcerated at the time. The hunger strike sought to end the "period of barbarity" and regain human dignity within the prison walls. Four primary leaders died during the fast: Kemal Pir - Vikipedi
Following the September 12, 1980 coup, Diyarbakır No. 5 Military Prison became notorious as one of the world's most brutal detention centers. Prisoners were subjected to systematic physical and psychological abuse, including: 14 Temmuz 1982 Diyarbakir Zindani
Inmates were reportedly forced to eat dog excrement and forbidden from speaking their native Kurdish language. The protest was announced in the courtroom by