Free them all! Instead of protesting outside City Hall in #Linköping I am taking part via #ClimateStrikeOnline today. And so can you, please feel free to join us! This is my 129th week online. #FreeThemAll #FreeAlaa #FreeOcalan #FreeMariamTirab #DigitalStrike #FridaysForFuture #ClimateStrike #klimatstrejk #klimat #climate #ClimateCrisis #klimatkris #UprootTheSystem (at Stadshuset (Linköping)) https://www.instagram.com/p/ClG27TJMbv3/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
Solidarity with Rojava! Lecture and interview with Remzi Kartal, co-president of the People’s Congress (Kongra-Gel)
Remzi Kartal visited us and other internationalist and Kurdish comrades here in Finland in January 2019. He spoke about the difficult last year and what we as internationalist supporters can expect and how to support the Rojava Revolution! Here are notes from his lecture, and questions posed to him afterwards.
Some words from Remzi on the past year and the new year to come:
The last year was marked by hard times, but following a hard struggle we step in to the new year. Of the last year that has passed (2018), the revolution in Rojava has shown success. It became known in the wider world, and has made Turkey afraid of that revolution. This is what caused Turkey to attack Afrin on 20.1.2018.
The isolation of Ocalan has been stronger and stronger; he has been unable to see his lawyers for 8 years now.
Journalism has been effectively banned in Bakur and Turkey.
Turkey also attacked Basur (Iraqi Kurdistan), the main bases of the movement, occupying areas in Basur as well.
Kurdistan is divided by four nation states, but Turkey has played a more dirty role than the others by infringing on their sovereignty. Fighting the Turkish state is thus fighting for the Kurdish region: Bakur, Basur, Rojava and Rojhelat together.
The actions in solidarity with Afrin by our internationalist comrades, have always been by our side.
Regarding the hunger strikes (Leyla Güven and those in solidarity with hers), one good thing that has come out of this was that it gathered people around, and that has strengthened our struggle. Solidarity with the hunger strike was how the new year started. Thus, our new year began with our struggle against the fascist Turkish state.
As we saw during the time of the siege of Kobane, we saw then the solidarity and positive results of that solidarity. If you want the Rojava struggle and the struggle that started in Bakur to win, and to end the isolation of Öcalan — all of those things — this year we have to start a strong struggle together and in our future fight.
Hungerstrikes and ending Öcalan’s isolation in prison:
All of you internationalists [who are here/who have supported us] are not our friends, but our comrades [hevalno]. If we don’t end fascism of the Turkish state, neither side of the Kurdish region can be stable. Turkey can however attack at any time, and we should be ready for that stage. The basis of Turkish facsim is war, so we have to be ready at all times.
The main focus for us should be to end the isolation of Öcalan. Ending his isolation can open up many things, and in this we need our internationalist comrades.
Leyla Güven is now [at the time of writing] in her 78th day of hunger strike [Leyla has been releasd from Amed prison, but has continued the hunger strike from home]. She can die at any time. As far we know, 225 people (and increasing all the time) in Bakur are also on hunger strike, including HDP MPs, Kurdish mayors, and political prisoners in Turkish prisons. All are calling for the end of the isolation of Öcalan, and for Öcalan to be part of the continuation of the project he started.
According to the hunger strikers, internationalists could be more organised and be ready for any possible action, or reaction, such as the potential of facing martyrdom while on hunger strike. Those on hunger strike are expecting us on the outside to be their voice, especially those of us free and outside of prison. They know the danger of death. What we can do is to make the public more aware, including NGO’s, organisations, media, politically leftist parties (Like in Germany, Sweden). Of course, those are also in control by the capitalist system, that we are aware of. That is why, strategically, our allies are those looking for alternatives, those always in the struggle with us. Like anarchists and anti-authoritanists.
Why do the hunger strikers sacrifice in this way? It is a question to their comrades and is a request to strengthen the struggle.
ISIS is globally dangerous, not just in the Middle East. We know Erdogan is in cooperation with ISIS and other jihadists. The stronger Erdogan is the stronger ISIS is.
Goals of 2019:
The main goal should be to end the isolation of Öcalan. Ending that means an opening to the end Turkish fascism, which in turn means a closer step to a free Kurdistan. In other words, this would open the Kurdish struggle even more. The means towards this goal include pushing the EU Commission to force Turkey to act. Or to push the CPT to visit Imrali prison. How can they be so passive? Isolation clearly equals torture.
This also includes plans and actions like demos, panels, conferences, films, among others. Things that can help awareness and knowledge of the struggle. Things that can bring internationalists and Kurdish comrades together! We also shouldn’t forget that we can wake up and make aware those that don’t want to hear or to listen.
Q and A:
1. Thoughts on US announcing that it will pull out of Syria, Turkey’s offensive plans in Rojava
These actions have shown that Trump has taken economic relations between him and Erdogan as more important. When the news first broke, Syrian Kurds were worried. Would this be another Afrin? The leadership of the Democratic Republic of northern and eastern Syria published their opinion, and this in turn changed the opinion of others - what they said was this: the Rojava Revolution didn’t start because of the US and it won’t end because of it either. The people of Rojava are now starting a new phase. There is still danger of a new Turkish attack, but now is the time for internationalists and Kurds living outside of Rojava to show more solidarity with Rojava.
2. Thoughts on the Turkification and jihadisation of Afrin, and resistance to it
Öcalan’s philosophy is the main basis in northern and eastern Syria. All elements in society in Rojava have been coming closer and making society together based on this philosophy. That is why Turkish fascism becomes afraid, and feels vulnerable. Decades ago, these types of struggles would be limited to the local area one lives in, but now this struggle is all over the world. This is a big anxiety for fascism.
The solution is coming closer because the struggle is being wider and stronger. ‘This more you come closer to the darkness the more the light comes closer to you’. It is difficult to imagine that Turkey wants to occupy the whole of Rojava. It is more probable that an attack from the Turkish side would be in some targeted small areas to test our reaction.
Internationalist comrades should prepare for solidarity of the same kind as when Kobane was attacked by ISIS. The main thing to think about, and also a good reason to become really aware of this revolution, is what the aims are of this revolution (democratic confederalism, feminism, antifascism, ecology) and to bring it to others.
3. What will change (concretely), and what will it lead to, when Öcalan’s isolation is broken?
Breaking isolation does not equal an immediate end of fascism, of course. But if we can break it, it is more motivating to defeat fascism. We will never stop until fascism is gone. Turkey and jihadists have taken over Afrin and are changing its demography deliberately; they are building a small Turkey — Turkish flag, Turkish education, Turkish language, etc. Full assimilation is what they demand, to scare people, and to make many of them leave. However, the people of Afrin are still struggling, still fighting in very appreciated ways. Those who lost their house or village, many are in camps in the Shaaba area, but they continue to work against the occupation. The YPJ/YPG and SDF are still fighting in the same way as guerrillas, and the YPJ/YPG continue their fight for Afrin until the end.
4. You used to be a People’s Party MP in Turkey. What are your thoughts on Turkey then as an MP vs now?
I was elected in 1991 as an MP and left in 1994. Some comrades were fighting in Turkey, and the opportunity came up to leave. I wanted to continue the struggle, and have been in Europe now for 26 years and 4 months. The difference? Action of the government against the people is getting stronger, but on the other hand the struggle from the people is getting wider.
In the context of, for example, the Gezi Park demonstrations in 2013, there are no opportunities for democratic movements or activities at the moment, fascism is taking over. However, we are strongly getting these groups together so we can act in a stronger way together.
An economic crisis is now in Turkey, and there will be local elections at the end of March. Thus, there are more possibilities that AKP will break down. People will really start to feel the economic crisis now or after the election, at which point spells the end of fascism, or at least the end of AKP government legitimacy. This will effect all parts of society, and a struggle against the government will probably be in the summer.
