Our Statements

october 22, 2022

Let Us Raise Our Voices Against the Chemical Weapons Attacks!

The Turkish army has been using chemical weapons against the Freedom Guerrilla for years. Recently, 17 members of the Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla fell as martyrs due to attacks with chemical weapons. The latest reactions and statements after videos were published with regards to this issue, are a clear expression of conscience. Taking this kind of stance is the most basic criterion and virtue of being human.

This greatest of all crimes against humanity and this most severe of all war crimes is being carried out with the instructions of the Turkish army and its commander-in-chief, the fascist Erdogan. The recent statement of Şebnem Korur Fincancı, President of the TTB [Türk Tabipler Birliği – Turkish Medical Association], who is one of the hundreds of people of conscience speaking out against these crimes, is very meaningful and valuable.

Şebnem Korur said in her recent statement that the Turkish Armed Forces have used chemical weapons, that the chemical gases used in these attacks directly affect the human nervous system, that these gases are being used despite the fact that they are prohibited, that it is obligatory under international conventions for an independent delegation to conduct an investigation in the affected region, and that – within the scope of the implementation of international conventions and the Geneva Convention prohibiting the use of chemical weapons – the principles of the Minnesota Protocol need to be considered when such an allegation arises. It is unacceptable that the Erdogan government and its minions, who want to cover up this truth, have now initiated a criminal investigation to suppress and silence this voice of conscience. We would therefore like to condemn this decision of the Erdogan government.

The President of the Turkish Medical Association Şebnem Korur Fincancı is a world-renowned specialist of forensic medicine and a respected scientist. She is a human rights defender who has courageously voiced the truth for years. Şebnem Korur Fincancı has always been on the side of life and survival. She has always been in pursuit of the truth and has used scientific facts to reveal it. We believe that all democrats and scientists, especially physicians and health workers, now need to also take a stance against the attacks against her by the fascist Erdoğan government and its minions. Şebnem Korur Fincancı is the voice of our conscience and of all of humanity. To protect this voice and this conscience means to protect our honor.

We therefore call on all people of conscience who stand for life and survival to raise their voices and take action against the chemical weapons attacks which constitutes crimes against humanity and war crimes.

KCK Health Committee