january 19, 2021
Complicity of International Powers in Ongoing Imprisonment of Abdullah Öcalan
“Legally speaking, there are no new developments [regarding Abdullah Öcalan’s imprisonment on the Imrali prison island in Turkey]. The total isolation of continues. We are still faced with a government that refuses to implement its own laws. This situation goes beyond a classic captivity. The prison policy on Imrali resembles the time of antiquity or the Middle Ages. Absolutely no news reach the outside world concerning the imprisoned person. This is the kind of situation we have been faced with for almost a year, for ten months now. There are absolutely no news about the situation on Imrali. Lately, there have been numerous discussions regarding this issue. Different institutions and organizations, including the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, have put it on their agenda. But it is difficult for us to understand what kind of committee we are dealing with here: Laws are clearly being violated and people are being deprived of their rights in many ways. Law and justice have completely vanished. But the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe has not even been able to make a statement or take a stance regarding this situation – let alone come up with a solution for it. And this attitude is still continuing. Thus, it has become clear that there is a situation of complicity with regards to the Imrali system. No matter how much the AKP-MHP government and the fascist Turkish state system are running this system practically, their real role does not go beyond that of a guardian. So Imrali really is an international prison. This is the right way to describe it. It is a place where hostages are being held. Imrali is not a prison that was established on a legal basis. In the course of the last 10, 20 years, the system of Capitalist Modernity and the forces led by the USA have established similar practices in many different places around the world. This is part of their special warfare. But, of course, Imrali goes far beyond all these other places. All the international powers remain silent, because they are complicit in the Imrali system.”
Inability of Turkey`s Political Parties to Solve the Country`s Problems
“Turkish politics is completely worn out. No matter wheter the government or the opposition, the ‘Republican Coalition’ or the ‘National Coalition’ – neither of them is able to produce anything new. They are completely incapable of developing a solution for society. Recently, all of them had heated discussions over Önder Apo [Abdullah Öcalan], Imrali and the Kurdish question. But none of them possesses the strength to come up with a solution. They have absolutely nothing to offer. So we are really faced with completely worn out politics in Turkey. Thus, it has become clear that the ideas of Önder Apo – the concepts of Democratic Autonomy and Democratic Nation – are the only source for solving the current problems. In today’s Turkey, there are no other ideas with which the Kurdish question, but also all the other problems of the country can be solved in a democratic, political way. Only Önder Apo has such ideas to offer. Nobody is able to say anything substantial regarding these ideas. There is, for example, Tayyip Erdogan who lately put pressure on Kemal Kilicdaroglu by accusing him of working together with certain people or forces. This shows, that Tayyip Erdogan is not capable of saying a single word regarding the Kurdish question. These discussion resemble nothing more than a street fight. This is the kind of situation Turkish politics finds itself in today. What kind of politicians are they? What kind of an opposition is this? But this is the current situation. In today’s Turkey, only Önder Apo has something substantial to offer. But they have imprisoned him in the torture and isolation system of Imrali and have thus dragged Turkey into a huge catastrophe.”
Results of War in Kurdistan in 2021
“So what has the latest war balance sheet [published by the People’s Defense Forces HPG] shown us? It has shown us that a very heavy war took place in 2021. In order to minimize their crushing defeat in Gare, the fascist Turkish army and AKP-MHP’s fascist dictatorship started to attack the [South Kurdish regions] Metina, Zap and Avasin on April 23, 2021. But, there too, they were defeated. They faced a huge resistance there and thus suffered one crushing defeat after the other. That is what the war balance sheet [of the HPG] shows us. All the numbers in this balance sheet are absolutely true. Actually, the numbers listed there even only show the minimum. The HPG has stated that they have only listed the numbers that they were able to definitely verify. So, actually, this war balance sheet does not even show half of the results of this ongoing war. Because the HPG has not been able to verify everything. So what is especially important to understand in this context? It is important to understand that the results of this war are being hidden from Turkey’s society and the international public. Tayyip Erdogan and Devlet Bahceli are hiding their defeat. Our Central Command [of the HPG] has stated this publicly numerous times and has called on the public to take a stance. The truth is, that there is a heavy war going on [in Kurdistan] and that the the fascist Turkish army and AKP-MHP’s fascist dictatorship are continuously suffering heavy blows. But they are hiding all of this. They try to create the impression that they are a good and successful government that fights against terrorism. Some of their ministers, like Hulusi Akar and Süleyman Soylu, are doing this. There was this one minister of Saddam who always made public statements about what they would do or were allegedly doing. He announced all kinds of offensives at the time. But in the end, they simply collapsed. This is what these Turkish ministers resemble today. They, too, are constantly making public announcements about all kinds of things but actually they are completely powerless. The fact that they are still on their feet is not due to their own strength. The international reactionary forces are holding them on their feet. NATO and capitalist modernity are holding them on their feet. If this support from Europe, the US or NATO stops for just one single day, they will collapse. They will instantly come to an end. That is the situation they find themselves in today.”
Need for Turkey`s Opposition to Take Stance Against War
“The opposition [in Turkey] needs to shed light on this and take a clear stance against the war. What is the opposition going to do if not do something against the war? Or does the opposition seek to wage war even more than the current government? These times are over. In the past, we have seen the politics of the CHP and also of the IYI Party. Where has this IYI Party come from? We know their roots very well. All of them suffered defeat after defeat in the past. They can only gain power or safeguard their role as the opposition, if they create new ideas and develop a new policy. But if they continue with the things of the past…well, the AKP-MHP is doing all this already. So this will lead to nothing for them. Now, the current conditions will definitely not allow these parties to gain power once again. We can say this very clearly. Therefore, everybody needs to be realistic and shed light on the real developments. Why are Turkey’s resources and opportunities being wasted to such an extent? Is nobody going to hold these fascist murderers and gangs accountable? Is nobody going to hold all those accountable who have dragged the country into this catastrophe? All of them will definitely need to be held accountable.”
Widespread Torture, Terror and Fascism in Turkey
“But it is important to acknowledge the following: There is a fascist and genocidal dictatorship in Turkey and Kurdistan. This dictatorship uses oppression and tyranny and commits massacres everywhere. From Imrali to the mountains [of Kurdistan]. From Rojava to South Kurdistan. From [the North Kurdish regions] Amed to Serhat. Today, fascist terror is a reality everywhere in Kurdistan and Turkey. So the fascist oppression, tyranny and torture does not only exist in the prisons. The increasing torture and tyranny in the prisons is a part of the fascist terror, oppression, massacres and tyranny outside of the prisons. It is important for everybody to acknowledge this. Especially our comrades in the prisons need to be aware of this. Nobody should think that tyranny or torture only exist in the prisons. All this exists everywhere. It is being used against everybody. And everybody is part of the resistance against this.”
HDP as Part of Broad Democratic Alliance Only Real Threat for AKP-MHP Regime
“Now, the AKP-MHP coalition is in the process of collapsing. It is completely breaking down. Every day, a new rupture occurs in their ranks. They have used up all available resources, all ways of politics and all their power. They have exhausted and exploited Turkey’s resources as much as they could. They have eaten as much as they were able to. That is why now they have nothing left to eat or to do. They are completely collapsing. Who is the alternative in such a situation? Who is the opposition? Clearly, it is the HDP alongside all the other democratic forces, the left and the socialist parties. The left and socialist forces together with the revolutionary, democratic forces of Turkey can look back at a 50, 100 year long history. Today, all these forces need to unite as a democratic coalition against AKP-MHP fascism. And when this fascism has collapsed, these forces need to take over power. They should not leave power to the system’s own spare tire, e.g. the ‘National Coalition’. It is very important for them not to allow the system’s spare tire to replace the old one. These efforts and this kind of democratic opposition are today being led by the HDP. The HDP is strong. It received six million votes in the last elections. Today, it has reached 8 to 10 million potential votes. Under the right circumstances and if the HDP unites with all other democratic forces, it can reach up to 15 or 20 million votes. Then, it will be the alternative. Actually, one should not give to much importance to Tayyip Erdogan’s and Devlet Bahceli’s criticism directed against the CHP. They have nothing to fear from the CHP. But they really do fear the HDP. They are really afraid of the revolutionary, democratic forces. By pretending to be afraid of the CHP and certain other parties, Tayyip Erdogan and Devlet Bahceli are actually trying to boost the credibility of these parties in society. So they are not really trying to put pressure on them. The left and socialist forces, the revolutionary and democratic forces and the HDP are their real fears. That is why they are attacking these forces.”