Hevallo. Turkey and The Kurdish Question.

Sehid Namerin!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:05:00 +0000

Aydin Erdem.

Kurdish Student of Dicle University.

Killed in Extra-Judicial Killing on Demonstration in Diyarbakir, 6th December 2009.

SEHID NAMERIN!

Report on Abdullah Ocalan's 'Death Cell'!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:42:00 +0000

Please find here a new report detailing the conditions of Kurdish Leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Turkey Jails and Tortures Children!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:13:00 +0000

TURKEY: JAILING KURDISH CHILDREN TO UNDERMINE DISSENT
Daan Bauwens

DIYARBAKIR, Southeastern Turkey (IPS) - Turkey is signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, but that does not stop minors in the country's Kurdish dominated eastern and southeastern regions from ending up with stiff jail sentences.

In fact, after amendments were recently made to the country's anti-terror law, it is possible to charges children as terrorists and put them away for up to 50 years in jail.

According to official figures, there are currently 2,622 minors serving time in Turkish prisons. Earlier this week officials admitted that the figure was rising.

Lawyer Canan Atabay who represents the Diyarbakir Bar Association at the European Union and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and is also a member of the Justice for Children Initiative (JCI) that has opposed indiscriminate arrests and sentencing of children for the last three years believes that the law targets Kurdish children.

According to figures maintained by the JCI there are currently no fewer than 3,000 children being held in Turkish prisons. ‘'Almost all of them are Kurdish,’’ Atabay told IPS.

Turkey's crackdown on children began in the aftermath of the 2006 street riots in Diyarbakir, a predominantly Kurdish city where support for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that is struggling for the rights of Kurdish citizens runs high.

In 2006, after the public funeral of 14 PKK members who were allegedly killed with chemical weapons, clashes between demonstrators and security forces broke out.

After the initial comment of Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that ‘'whether men, women or children, the security forces will react with disproportionate force’', in the four days of riots ten people, five of them children, were shot by police arms. One child's skull was crushed by security forces.

Two months after the riots, Turkey's Supreme Court ruled that the 2005 anti-terror law could now be applied to children in the 15 - 18 age group. From then on they can be tried in Heavy Penal Courts which are authorised to try cases of organised crime, terrorism and state security.

In 2006, the Supreme Court also changed its interpretation of the anti-terror law: whenever somebody is involved in a demonstration, carries a flag or does any other kind of propaganda for an illegal organisation, he or she is considered to be part of this organisation and defined as a 'terrorist'.

‘’After the events of 2006, the state adopted a different perspective towards children,’’ says Diyarbakir lawyer Kezban Yilmaz. ‘’Putting a child into prison and preventing interaction with the family has the effect of making the family collapse,’’ she told IPS. ‘’The target of this repression is Kurdish society as a whole, the goal is to obstruct the democratic demands of the population.’'

‘'A child who is arrested in Istanbul for taking part in a demonstration will be tried according to the laws on demonstrations and public meetings,’’ says Kezban who is also the spokeswoman for JCI. ‘’A child arrested in Diyarbakir will be tried according to the laws on demonstrations and public meetings and accused of propagandising for a terrorist organisation and being a member of this terrorist organisation.’'

Currently Kezban is handling the symbolic case of Engin Tekin, a 17-year-old facing 50 years imprisonment for taking part in a public demonstration. He was arrested last October and is charged with seven offences: throwing stones at the police, damaging private property, being member of a banned organisation, possessing explosive articles and using them.

'Different offences carry different sentences,’’ Kezban explains. ‘’Propagandising for a terrorist organisation equals three years of imprisonment, membership starts from seven years. When you add these up, for instance a child that joins the Kurdish new year celebrations and is arrested, is on average sentenced from 13 up to 28 years in prison.'’

But according to Kezban, currently there are children being arrested and sentenced for no more than giving the 'V' for victory sign, singing Kurdish songs, living near where a demonstration took place or accidentally passing through at the time of the demonstration. '’They are being arrested in an indiscriminate way,’’ she told IPS.

The arrested children are mostly sentenced on the basis of police testimonies and video footage. Only one percent of all prosecuted children get acquitted.

Of the 60 cases Canan has handled since 2008, charges were dropped on only one occasion when the judge did not find the police testimonies convincing and there was no video footage. '’Normally judges consider police testimonies to be sufficient proof to put the children away,’’ Canan tells IPS.

Besides, according to interviews and meetings conducted by JCI with jailed children, prison conditions are inhumane. It is not uncommon to find bugs or glass in the food, there is no access to fresh air in the cells and children are verbally insulted by the prison personnel as they are considered to be terrorists.

While there are no cases on record of physical violence in Diyarbakir, in Adana a city more to the south, there is evidence of torture used against children.

Although 90 percent of children in jail are students, authorities interfere with parents trying to bring them course material. There is insufficient medical staff and the procedure for hospitalisation in case of serious illness is too complex and often denied.

Children brought to courthouse for the trial are often made to stay from nine in the morning until ten in the evening often with no provision for food. Sometimes they are given tomatoes or bread with chocolate spread.

As a reaction to a report drafted by the JCI earlier this year, the U.N. Children’s Rights Committee presented 14 questions to the Turkish government on the jailing of youth under the age of 18 for terrorist activities. On Oct. 2, government spokesperson Cemil Çiçek proposed three amendments to the law which are now being discussed in parliament.

Articles which allow the punishing of children by equating throwing stones with armed resistance, increased penalties under anti-terror laws or convicting children for being related to a member of a banned organisation are not being debated.

‘'Other proposed amendments by the government are simply impossible for practical reasons,’’ says Atabay. ‘’For instance, the government proposed trying children aged 15 to 18 in juvenile courts, but only 15 cities out of Turkey’s 81 have such courts. Where there is no juvenile court, they will continue to be tried and sentenced in an ordinary court.'’

'’The amendments do not change the government's right to sentence children to long prison terms. It must be made impossible to put children into prison. It is not a school,’’ Atabay said. (Dec 6, 2009) (END)Source: IPS

HAKKARİ YİNE KARIŞTI MAHİR YILDIZ HAKKARİ
Uploaded by yuksekovahaber30. - News videos from around the world.

IN THIS VIDEO YOU SEE HOW TURKISH ARMY AND POLICE GAS CHILDREN.

The Fury of The Kurdish People Against the Treatment of Their Leader!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:49:00 +0000

Kurdish Info 7.12.2009- Demonstrations protesting at the prison conditions imposed on Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan continued and increased today. There were demonstrations in Diyarbakir, Batman, Istanbul, Hakkari and Mardin amongst other places. In many areas stores did not open for business and police intervention was very harsh. University student Aydin Erdem was massacred by police, hundreds of people were wounded and 260 were arrested in Diyarbakir.

Kurds were protesting for their Leader Abdullah Öcalan again today.

They voiced their deep feelings of concern for Öcalan in nearly all the cities of Kurdistan. There was an air of uprising in Amed, the heart of Kurdistan. However, there was bloodshed in this city following Prime Minister Erdogan’s statement, made while ‘fleeing’ to the USA, which targeted the DTP and Kurds. In the wake of these threats by Erdogan, the police attacked demonstrators including women and children without restraint and killed 23 year old Aydin Erdem by shooting him in the back.

Tension had risen in Kurdistan following Prime Minister Erdogan saying ‘we will start from scratch’ after the Peace Groups had been greeted by millions of Kurds on 19th October. Then Erdogan made statements that supported the lynching of DTP members. This was followed by Erdogan intensifying Öcalan’s prison conditions and then finally his pointing out Kurds and DTP members as targets.

Not a day had gone by following these words without Kurdish youth being shot at in Amed by police. Shooting at unarmed protesters from behind, the police massacred 23 year old Aydin Erdem and arrested the eye-witness of the incident. Erdem’s autopsy confirmed that he had been killed by a bullet fired at close range. Erdem who was a 3rd year Mathematics student at Dicle University was buried in the Çinaralti village of Mardin’s Mehsert town. Taking orders from Erdogan, the police’s hostile response was a clear indication of what was to come.

Tensions rose as police and military helicopters flew constantly over the Amed protests. Police who could not tolerate Amed’s defence of Öcalan attacked the demonstrators savagely. Clashes occurred in the side streets in response to the gas bombs and compressed water fired into the crowds by police. In retaliation demonstrators attacked the AKP county headquarters with molotov cocktails. Police then used their guns to retaliate. With orders from Erdogan, the police force turned Amed into a war zone. Members of Parliament were also targeted in random attacks by police.

In Batman the public poured into the streets with their representatives, the DTP MPs, to protest against the prison conditions of Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan. 80 percent of stores were shut in the city as a reaction and the Kurdish public marched shouting the slogan: ‘‘We regard any injury to Öcalan as an injury to us.’’ The crowd wanted to march to the DTP county headquarters but a barricade was erected in front of the Farabi Hospital to prevent them. The sit-in to overcome the barricade was not successful and it was not long before the mounting tension turned into street clashes. When the crowd on Amed street began marching the police attacked them using gas bombs. The police were so reckless that they did not even consider the presence of Members of Parliament.

The most heavily attended demonstration in Kiziltepe, which has been protesting for days, occurred today. The crowd, together with DTP MPs, told the Turkish state; ‘‘the attempt to oppress the will of the Kurdish people will not pay off.’’ The actions and imposition placed on Abdullah Öcalan, and the case to shut-down the DTP were assessed as being attempts to oppress and stifle the will and freedom of the Kurdish people. It was emphasised that these plans would not succeed. After the meeting the crowd wanted to organise a march to continue their reaction, but the police were out in force again. It was gas bombs and compressed water against stones in the ensuing clashes. Also stores were shut in Mardin’s Nusaybin province.

Police who were given authorisation by Prime Minister Erdogan also showed their hostility in Siirt. Many were wounded as police, who had blockaded the city days before, attacked the people with gas bombs. In a speech he made in Siirt, DTP MP Osman Özçelik criticised the hypocritical policies of the AKP government. Özçelik said that the AKP’s hypocritical policies had become evident with the practices in Imrali and warned of an internal war. Following the speech the crowd began marching and shouting slogans in support of Öcalan. 20 people were wounded and many taken into custody in ensuing clashes between youths and police.

Thousands of people also marched in the Kurtalan town of Siirt. The crowd held up banners which read, ‘either freedom for our leader and identity or resistance and vengeance forever,’ ‘the approach to Öcalan is the approach to peace,’ and chanted the slogans, ‘long live leader Apo,’ ‘greetings greetings a thousand greetings to Imrali,’ ‘the PKK is the people, the people are here,’ as they walked from the DTP county headquarters to the Kurtalan Municipality clock tower.

Store owners in the Sakirpasa district of Adana’s Seyhan town did not open their stores in protest. A group of youths formed a barricade in the Tuesday Bazaar Street and fought with police. The clashes spread following the intervention of police with gas bombs and panzers. The group used fireworks, molotov cocktails and stones against the police and constantly shouted the slogans, ‘long live leader Apo,’ ‘there is no life without our leader’ and ‘Öcalan.’

Hundreds of people lit a fire in Viransehir and blocked roads. The group then marched towards the market centre shouting slogans in support of Öcalan. Police tried to prevent the group from entering the market centre by using pepper gas and barricading Karacadag Street with panzers. Protestor responded by throwing stones, fireworks and molotov cocktails at the police and formed a barricade with dustbin containers, bricks and stones. Clashes continued for nearly two hours as six people were detained.

Clashes between youths and police in the Cudi and Yenisehir districts of Silopi resulted in police car running over 5 year old Yasemin Yakaemir. The little girl was wounded in the incident and was taken first to Silopi State Hospital and then transferred to Cizre State Hospital.

Tradesmen closed their stores in the Dogubeyazit town of Agri to protest the detainment of 28 people in yesterday’s demonstrations. 28 people were taken into custody yesterday in demonstrations against the worsening in Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan’s prison conditions. Agri governer Mehmet Çetin organised a press conference at his headquarters to make statements regarding the events of the past week. Çetin invoked that of the 74 people detained, 42 were children; he went on to say, ‘I could hardly stop myself from crying.’

In Hakkari demonstrators marched with posters of Öcalan. Police intervened by throwing gas bombs and firing warning shots. Demonstrators threw stones in response to the intervention, resulting in clashes. In Semdinli the crowd began marching following the visit of the Maxmur and Kandil Peace Groups, upon police intervention, events spread to the whole of the town. It was indicated that plain clothes police officers arrived at the scene in a truck and attacked demonstrators with batons and wooden planks and that some protestors were thrown off the bridge at the town entrance. 12 people have been taken into custody so far.

The DTP Küçükçekmece headquarters was attacked by an armed group who fired at the building and broke windows. The assailants shouted insulting slogans at Kurds and then left the scene of the crime. Indicating that the assailants had fired many rounds at the building, eyewitnesses said that they had shouted, ‘Exterminate these whores. Don’t let Kurds live’ and left the place leaving behind them many shell cases. Police have yet to visit the scene of the crime.

On the other hand protestors who were detained in the Ümraniye Esensehir demonstration did not fit into the police station. 15 people were detained following police intervention in the Bagcilar Yenikapi Square demonstration. A child was beaten and detained following the march in Gaziosmanpasa Karayollari district. Also 9 people were taken into custody after police attacked demonstrations in Istanbul’s Sancaktepe, Küçükçekmece, Atasehir, Gaziosmanpasa and Sultangazi towns.

Hundreds of people came together in the Sevket Sümer, Günes and Yenipazar districts of Mersin’s Akdeniz town following DTP’s meeting, but police attacked the crowd. The police’s intervention was met with stones and molotov cocktails thrown by youths.

11 out of 14 people detained in house raids conducted by the Izmir Anti-Terror Branch were arrested and sent to Kiriklar F Type prison for ‘being members of an illegal organisation,’ ‘taking part in an unauthorised demonstration,’ and ‘damaging public property.’

Students of the Maxmur camp continued their 3 day sit-in in front of the United Nations to show their loyalty to Abdullah Öcalan. The parents of hundreds of students also supported their children by joining in. The students demanded that the CPT urgently send a delegation to Imrali and that Imrali be shut down immediately.

The fury in Kurdistan and Turkey spills over into Europe. Kurds protesting the death threats against Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan were on the streets in Europe. 500 people came together in Berlin. In a manner similar to their Turkish counterparts, German police attacked demonstrators who were shouting, ‘long live leader Apo.’ 1500 people marched in Dortmund where they faced constant provocations by people brandishing Turkish flags. Many young people were arrested when police attacked demonstrators. Racist Turks attempted to provoke Kurdish demonstrators in Cologne as well. There were also marches and demonstrations in other areas of Germany, such as Hamburg, Münster, Saarbrüken and Hannover. Police attacked demonstrators on many occasions during these marches. The joint message in these marches was the claiming of and solidarity with the Kurdish People’s Leader.

Kurds said ‘no’ to the Imrali Death Pit in demonstrations all over Europe. Thousands of Kurds came together in France, Italy, Belgium, England, Austria and the Scandinavian countries. In France, Italy and Belgium thousands of Kurds protested the Imrali Death Pit and warned the AKP not to ‘try their patience.’ Kurds all around Europe organised 3 day hunger strikes and sit-ins in front of Parliaments to condemn the conditions in Imrali and to demand that the CPT send a delegation to Imrali.
Source: Kurdish Info

7 Turkish Soldiers Killed in Tokat.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:11:00 +0000

7 Turkish soldiers have been killed in an ambush on a Turkish military convoy in Tokat. No group has yet claimed responsibility.

Statement of DTP on Turkish Constitutional Court's Closure Case.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:03:00 +0000

Democratic Society Party (DTP) Statement

TO INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC OPINION

On 20 November 2007, a lawsuit was commenced in Turkey’s Constitutional Court demanding the closure of the Democratic Society Party (Demokratik Toplum Partisi – DTP).

On 8 December 2009, the Constitutional Court will meet and issue a decision regarding the closure case, which has been continuing for two years.

If the case - which has been hanging over our party like Democles’ sword for two years – ends in a decision in favor of closure, it won’t be the first time it’s happened to parties doing politics in the name of the Kurds of Turkey. As HEP, DEP, OZDEP, and HADEP were closed, DEHAP decided to dissolve itself as its own closure case was pending.

The reason for the demand to close these parties has been their approach to the Kurdish Problem.

The closure case against the DTP conflicts with universal legal principles. Despite the 10% election threshold intended to obstruct the representation of Kurds in parliament, the DTP succeeded in electing 22 parliamentarians by fielding independent candidates in the 22 July 2007 elections, and subsequently formed a parliamentary group with 21 deputies.

Our party has made significant contributions to Turkish democracy through our effective opposition in parliament, active participation in legislative activities, and our introduction of a peaceful struggle for the country’s democratization. In order to solve the Kurdish problem in a democratic, peaceful and conciliatory way, (for example, by submitting extensive projects in the Turkish Grand National Assembly), our party has spearheaded the development of debate on a solution to the Kurdish problem.

With its presence and active opposition, the DTP has exerted great effort to overcome the authoritarianism and narrow-minded mentality in Turkey. It has expressed the importance of the self-expression of different identities and cultures at every turn.

It has struggled to bring democracy to a pluralistic point. The current basis of the Constitution of the Turkish Republic is “one language, one nation, one culture”. This approach is stated in the constitution. The state’s evaluation of all identities and cultures other than “Turkishness” as “the other”, “enemy”, and “separatist” has caused many tragedies and created much pain since the establishment of the republic.

The massacres in Dersim, Maras, Sivas, Corum, and Gazi are a few examples. The policies of denial, destruction, and assimilation imposed on Kurds during the Republic’s 86 year history have resulted in 29 Kurdish rebellions. Kocgiri, Sheik Said, Agri, Dersim and various other Kurdish rebellions were suppressed in a very bloody way.

Believing that their painful history is not their destiny, that democracy and peace will eventually be established on the thousands of years old land of Mesopotamia, and that different nations will live equally and freely together, Kurdish people have never given up the struggle for freedom, democracy, and peace.

After the 29 March 2009 local elections, debate of the Kurdish Problem in Turkey – called by its true name for the first time – facilitated hope within Turkish society. Discussions about the resolution of the Kurdish Problem generated hope as they emphasized a democratic and peaceful process, rather than one based on repression, destruction.

The belief in an option other than “dying and killing” and the possibility of a diplomacy based on the idea “to live and to let live”, positively affected not only Kurds, but all other communities. Notwithstanding the AKP’s insistence on excluding our party from the process, the DTP has always shared its opinions and suggestions in order to transform the process into one of peace and democracy through public opinion.

Despite our party’s efforts for democracy and peace, the AKP government defended waves of repression and arrests against our party while also preparing the ground for attempted lynchings against us, legitimated through the AKP’s statements. While intensifying repression of our party, the AKP also increased military operations and granted approval for cross-border operations.

Using the slogan “may the mothers stop crying,” policies the government carried out during the democratic opening process have caused many mothers to cry.

Even if the AKP’s arguments about the Kurdish issue are different to that of the past, in substance it has imposed the state’s policy of solution-less deadlock without taking into consideration the will of the Kurds. The AKP has striven to stifle the Kurds’ democratic opposition.

This mentality is fundamentally driving the closure of our party, which does political work on behalf of the Kurdish people. The subject at the heart of the closure case, is our party’s perspective on the solution to the Kurdish question.

At every opportunity, our party has defended the idea that the Kurdish Question is not a “terror” issue as claimed by Turkish state, but rather a question of a people’s freedom and their exercise of legal, democratic rights. Our party believes that the PKK is a result of the Kurdish issue and not a cause of it.

Additionally, our party believes that the PKK and its leader Mr Abdullah Öcalan must be included in the process in order to provide a permanent, democratic and peaceful solution. We have clearly submitted our perspectives on this issue to Turkish and international public opinion because of our responsibility regarding it. Demanding closure of a party because it doesn’t support the official state ideology and criticizes the state’s policies is incompatible with any democratic perspective, morality or law.

In this context, it is clear that main aim of the AKP government’s project – first called the “Kurdish Opening,” later the “Democratic Opening” and later the “National Unity Project” – is the elimination of Kurdish democratic opposition. The government’s long-imposed policies of refusal, denial and annihilation have become a fine-tuned approach of elimination through the so-called democratic opening. The emergence of our party’s closure case during this opening is a result of this approach.

During the closure case against the AKP, the head of the Constitutional Court stated that there remains a need to revise current legal provisions regarding closure of political parties in order to bring existing procedures into line with modern democratic norms.

However, to do this requires a majority in parliament. This was the duty of the AKP government, which had a majority in parliament. The AKP has remained aloof to the closure process and has not fulfilled its responsibilities. In addition, through its statements and conduct, the AKP has attempted to generate conditions suitable for the DTP’s closure.

Despite all these pressures, anti-democratic practices and inequalities, the DTP pooled more than 2,500,000 votes and won 98 municipalities in Kurdish-inhabited areas in the 29 March 2009 local elections.

The DTP also has the fourth-biggest party group in parliament. The aim of closing down our party is to push Kurds out of democratic politics. Closure could not reflect any other meaning. The potential closure verdict of 8 December won’t be a legal verdict; it will be a political one.

Finally, pushing the Democratic Society Party out of democratic politics would deepen the chaos and process of crisis in Turkey. It would weaken the Kurds’ belief in parliamentary politics.

The 1994 removal of DEP deputies from parliament and their subsequent imprisonment for tens of years is fresh in the memory of our people. Closing the DTP wouldn’t bring any benefit to democracy in Turkey and would have negative effects on Turkey’s EU accession process and foreign politics.

We call on all of international public opinion to stand in solidarity against the closure of the Democratic Society Party in order to prevent closure of the democratic political channels which have been developed by the Kurdish people and to develop democracy in Turkey.

6 December 2009

Contact: Democratic Society Party (DTP)

Barış Manco Cad. 32.Sok. No: 37 BALGAT / ANKARA

Tel: (+90) 312 286 32 00 Fax: (+90)312 285 18 19

E-mail: disbirim@hotmail.com

Young Kurdish Teacher Shot Dead by Turkish Authorities.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:49:00 +0000

One dead as violence flares in Turkey protests

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey — A student was shot dead Sunday during clashes between Turkish police and demonstrators protesting at the prison treatment of the founder of outlawed PKK party, sources said.

An estimated 15,000 protesters marched in the city of Diyarbakir in the majority Kurdish southeast in support of jailed rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan, who founded the Kurdistan People's Party.

Clashes erupted when some demonstrators threw stones and fireworks at riot police who tried to block the march, an AFP correspondent on the scene reported.

Riot police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse the crowd.

A 23-year-old student protester died from a bullet wound and two other people including a police officer were injured, according to local sources.

Security sources said in total one person was killed, three injured and 113 arrested across the region on Sunday.

The demonstration was called by the Kurdish Democratic Society Party to support Ocalan's claims of poor treatment at the Imrali island prison, where he has been serving a life sentence since 1999.

Turkey's justice ministry published photos on Friday to show that Ocalan's jail conditions were the same as those of other inmates in high-security prisons and said they met international standards.

Ocalan, 61, was the sole inmate at the prison on Imrali island until new prisoners arrived last month, after the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) criticised Ankara for violating Ocalan's human rights by keeping him in solitary confinement.

More demonstrations took place on Saturday in the southeastern town of Yuksekova where a 19-year-old suffered a serious head injury from a teargas grenade during clashes with police, and one officer was also injured, according to local security sources.

Join the Kurdish Hunger Strike outside UK Parliament!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:30:00 +0000

The Kurdish community in the UK have, today, begun a hunger strike outside the UK Parliament to protest against the new repressive cell conditions of the Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Please support our hunger strike by volunteering to take part and/or visiting/raising support.

We will be outside the UK Parliament for the foreseeable future and if you can support or help us in any way please do.

The future for Turkey is at the moment bleak. No meaningful change has actually been implemented. Only cosmetic promises masking a serious deterioration on the ground. DTP and Kurdish activists are being tortured at a higher rate than ever. Kurdish children are being dragged through the courts and jailed at an increased rate and extra judicial killings are on the rise.

Racist attacks on Kurds and a rise in ultra right wing Turkish nationalism is giving rise to worry that Turkey is poised to further polarise and war is imminent.

A different kind of war to anything seen previously with civil war being a real and tangible possibility.

Please support our hunger strike, visit our hunger strike outside the UK Parliament and raise your voice against the serious attack on the Kurdish Freedom Movement's hard won rights.

Abdullah Ocalan is being slowly executed in his new cell that is designed to accelerate his death.

This must not be allowed to happen!

Because the consequences for Turkey, Europe and the Middle East are unthinkable.

Hurriyet Publishes Pictures of Kurdish Leader's New Cell!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:09:00 +0000

Abdullah Ocalan's new prison cell.

Fuel to the Fire!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:13:00 +0000

ANKARA — Turkey's constitutional court will begin final deliberations next week on whether to outlaw the country's main Kurdish party on charges of links to separatist rebels.

The court said on its web site it would convene Tuesday to decide the fate of the Democratic Society Party (DTP), a process that Could take several days or weeks.

Turkey's chief prosecutor initiated the case in 2007, arguing the DTP had become a "focal point" of activities against national unity through its links with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has led a bloody 25-year insurgency in the southeast.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey and much of the international community.

The court will make its ruling against a backdrop of a government drive to expand Kurdish freedoms in a bid to erode popular support for the PKK and encourage rebels to end the insurgency, which has claimed about 45,000 lives.

The DTP, which holds 21 seats in the 550-member parliament, says it has "no organic links" with the PKK.

However, it refuses to brand the PKK a terrorist group, party members often uphold the rebels and their jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan, and PKK banners are a fixture at DTP rallies.

Most recently, the party angered Ankara when it organised a hero's welcome in October for eight PKK militants who had been living in exile. They were freed after surrendering to the Turkish authorities on their return in a gesture of good will to Ankara's reform pledges.

The DTP, led by veteran politician Ahmet Turk, was founded in 2005 as a successor to several Kurdish parties the constitutional court shut down for collaborating with the PKK.

Meanwhile Turkey's Interior Minister Besir Atalay said Thursday 153 people were being prosecuted for taking part in demonstrations that began a week ago to demand better treatment for Ocalan.

"We are determined to allow no actions aimed at our security," Atalay told the Anatolia news agency, denouncing "illegal acts."

Since last weekend, the anniversary of the founding of the PKK, Kurds have demonstrated across Turkey daily, sparking clashes with police.

DTP leader Ahmet Turk said on Tuesday that Ocalan's case was the key to a settlement of the Kurdish conflict.

PKK founder Ocalan, 61, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1999, is held on an island in the Sea of Marmara. Last month he was moved to a smaller cell but is now allowed to mingle with other inmates after years of solitary confinement.

Ahmet Turk and DTP Warns of Danger to Turkey if the Threat Over Abdullah Ocalan's Life is not Lifted!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:42:00 +0000

DTP: Country in danger because Öcalan placed in smaller room

The pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) has begun to portray the living conditions of imprisoned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan as the priority of the Kurdish people and urged the government to improve his living conditions immediately, warning that anything to the contrary would drag the country into clashes.

“The İmralı system should be abandoned immediately and not used as a tool to blackmail and threaten [others]. [Doing otherwise] will take the country to a dangerous point,” DTP leader Ahmet Türk said at a press conference yesterday. The conference was also attended by several DTP deputies.

Öcalan is serving a life sentence in a prison on İmralı Island, located off the coast of İstanbul. He was the sole inmate until recently, but eight other convicts have now been transferred to the island, and he was placed in a different cell.

Öcalan’s lawyers claim his new cell is six-and-a-half square meters, compared to the old cell’s 12 square meters. The new cell’s window is reportedly high and cannot be looked through unassisted. Öcalan, in his latest meeting with his lawyers last week, warned that his new prison conditions are harming his health.

In a written statement released on Monday, the PKK also depicted Öcalan’s new cell as a “death hole” and claimed that the aim of the move is to kill him. The same statement also suggested that they consider Öcalan’s health to be the health of the “Kurdish nation.”

In order to protest the conditions Öcalan is in, illegal and violent demonstrations began across the country on Nov. 27, the anniversary of the establishment of the PKK terrorist organization.

“There are certain issues on which the Kurds are sensitive. The first and foremost of these is Öcalan and his living conditions,” Türk said.

He urged the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to pay an immediate visit to the island to examine Öcalan’s new living conditions. The CPT has already visited the island four times and prepared reports critical of his situation.

Türk claimed that the recent changes were made to “improve” Öcalan’s situation but in reality do the exact opposite. He also suggested that a commission should be established by civil society organizations and politicians to visit Öcalan.

“The conditions under which Öcalan will contribute to peace should be created,” he said.

Türk claimed that Kurds take personally all positive and negative approaches to İmralı. “İmralı serves as a mirror for the process that the government has described as the democratization initiative. If this process is to turn into a real democratization process, one prerequisite must be met: İmralı,” he said.

He further added that a process in which Öcalan is ignored and neglected and dialogue is blocked will not serve to solve the problem, but rather will deepen it. “While conditions on İmralı get worse, talks about a process are not convincing,” Türk said.

The government at the end of the summer launched an initiative to solve Turkey’s decades-old Kurdish question and termed the process the democratization initiative.

The government chose “More freedom for everyone” as the slogan of the initiative and it frequently underlined that it will never consider discussing the issue with the PKK, saying the only party with a voice in this process is the nation itself.

The government also suggested that the democratization initiative will take place in several phases and as one of the very first steps, there will be mechanisms established such as an anti-discrimination institution which is to monitor claims of discrimination. Another government plan is to have names of settlements and geographical places revert to their original Kurdish names.

Türk described these government attempts as “tactics to delay the matter.”

“The question is whether to recognize the existence of Kurds in the Constitution,” he said.

Türk also claimed that the government aims to “eliminate the dynamics of Kurds with the assistance of foreign powers.”

“The government, instead of developing elimination plans with foreign forces, should develop solutions with internal dynamics immediately and without any further delay,” he said.

Kurdish Freedom Movement:"Our Patience is at Breaking Point! This is a Declaration of War!"

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:13:00 +0000

Kurdish Info 01.12.2009-The KCK have reacted strongly against the changes made in Kurdish Peoples Leader Abdullah Öcalan’s conditions of confinement, saying ‘‘the process is not ordinary, it is extraordinary.’’ The KCK warned that they are at breaking point, and that neither their movement nor the Kurdish people would be responsible for developments if Öcalan was not taken out of the ‘death pit’ he has been put into.

In their statement the KCK Executive Council emphasised that the conditions of Kurdish Peoples Leader Abdullah Öcalan had become worse following his prison transfer on 17th November. The statement read: ‘‘the transfer of our Leader Apo from one prison to another is a coup. With this, a new phase has begun in Kurdistan and Turkey. In this phase elimination is being enforced through our Leader Öcalan, and massacres against our people have been given the go-ahead, the policy of annihilation has started and continues to be enforced intensively.’’

Referring to Öcalan’s conditions as denoting a ‘‘death pit,’’ the KCK said: ‘‘The AKP government has transferred our Leader Öcalan to a new cell, however this is not just any old system or cell, but a death pit. In this way they are trying to annihilate him. This annihilation process has been initiated under the guise of lifting the isolation he has been subjected to and improving his conditions. This process of knowingly killing our Leader Öcalan is nothing less than enforcing massacre on our people. It is imperative that nobody views and presents this phase as being normal.’’

SOLITARY CONFINEMENT PUNISHMENT HAS BECOME CONSTANT

‘‘The CPT, following visits to Imrali, had decided that Leader Öcalan’s conditions needed to change and be improved. However the changes that have been put into effect have been exactly the opposite and now there is a deliberate arrangement to kill him. The intensive suppression, psychological torture, cases of physical torture and the poisoning incident have in the past 11 years, seriously damaged Leader Öcalan’s health. This new incident has taken his health to a critical point. The new conditions will further damage his already ailing health to an irredeemable point. In the past solitary confinement punishment was administered for varying reasons, now this solitary confinement has become constant.’’

THIS PROCESS IS AN ANNIHILATION PLAN

Emphasising that Öcalan was not just any prisoner and that his health and safety would determine the future of Turkey the KCK said: ‘‘Leader Öcalan is not just any prisoner. The health, safety and freedom of Leader Öcalan symbolises the health, safety and freedom of our people. Also this is a situation that will determine the future of Turkey. As the Kurdistan Freedom Movement we have constantly highlighted that for us and our people the approach towards Leader Öcalan is a reason for peace and war. We have declared 5 unilateral ceasefires, pulled the guerrilla out of Turkey’s borders and since April 13th declared a unilateral ceasefire, these have been done by our Leader for a peaceful-democratic solution to the Kurdish issue.

Leader Öcalan has also written a Road Map for a solution to the issue, but this has not yet been released to the public. For trust to develop between parties, and to develop the process for peace, Leader Öcalan suggested the return of three peace groups from Kandil, Maxmur and Europe, and this was done. The attitude and stance of the AKP government and Turkish State in the face of all this good-will and effort has exposed their intention of annihilation. The process that is in motion is a total annihilation plan. There is no doubt about this. It is now time for everyone, especially the Kurds that are close to the AKP, to see the deception, trickery and games of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan and other AKP officials.’’

A DECLARANCE OF WAR

‘‘This attack aimed at killing Leader Öcalan is on the verge of creating a process from which there can be no return. At the same time this attack is a project of war that has been developed against the peace project of our Leader, Movement and People. This practise against Leader Öcalan, who has struggled very hard for a peaceful and democratic solution to this issue, is most definitely a declaration of war and massacre. The attacks against our people in major cities are also a sign of this.’’

THEY ARE PLAYING WITH FIRE

Indicating that the government was playing with fire, the KCK made stern warnings: ‘‘Despite all appeals by our people, democrat parties and human rights organisations, the government has continued their silence and not made any statements. We would like to state that the AKP and all other parties concerned are playing with fire. For this reason, while there is still time, we are appealing for Leader Öcalan to be moved from these conditions which are threatening his health and safety. Taking into account the sensibilities of our people and movement we are calling for Leader Öcalan to be taken out of the cell he has been put into immediately. Otherwise our people and movement will not and cannot be held responsible for what may happen. As a movement we are at breaking point. Nobody should test the patience of our people and movement.’’

A CALL FOR ACTIONS OF LEGITIMATE SELF DEFENCE

The KCK made these appeals in its statement: ‘‘as the organisation that is responsible for the construction of a prison such as this and thus responsible for putting Leader Öcalan’s life in danger, the CPT must not remain a spectator to this situation any longer and visit Imrali within an urgent action plan and examine Leader Öcalan’s conditions. We are calling on the CPT to guarantee the health of Leader Öcalan and to take urgent precautionary measures in beginning his treatment. Furthermore we are appealing to all other humanitarians, health organisations, democrats, socialists and peace groups to play their roles.’’

‘‘The policies which are being developed around Leader Öcalan do not just concern the future of the Kurdish people, but also the Turkish people and democratisation of Turkey as well. This is why we are calling on all humanitarian organisations, peace groups, democrats and all those who are in favour of Turkey’s democratisation and the fraternity and equality of Turks and Kurds to raise their voices to stop this practise that will open the path for a civil war, and to be in solidarity with the Kurdish People and defend their democratic futures. This phase is not an ordinary but extraordinary phase. Our Leaders life is in danger. Every honourable Kurd, wherever they are, in the four parts of Kurdistan, in Europe and around the world, must be in resistance against this. To protect our existence and future against this annihilation and extermination plan we are calling on everyone to resist and strengthen the uprising based on the principles of self defence. We are calling on Kurdish youth and Kurdish women to lead this self defence and take it to victory.’’

Stop Turkey's State Killing of Abdullah Ocalan!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:46:00 +0000

Stop Turkey’s State Killing of Abdullah Ocalan!

Kurdish Federation in UK
Press Release 1st December 2009.

The Kurdish Freedom Movement sincerely and honestly believes that the Turkish authorities have taken their plan towards killing the leader of the Kurdish Freedom Movement, Abdullah Ocalan a step closer.

Recently the leader of the Kurdish Freedom Movement was moved from the cell he has been incarcerated in since his abduction from Kenya in 1999.

Far from being a progressive step towards greater freedom and improvement in the Kurdish leader’s prison conditions, Abdullah Ocalan’s new cell is far worse than the previous cell and it is widely believed that it has been meticulously and purposely designed to accelerate the death of the leader of the Kurdish people’s Freedom Movement. Such a death will be blamed on ‘natural causes’. Already suffering from breathing problems before entering the new smaller cell, the Kurdish Leader commented on his new conditions:

"My new cell is half the size of my old cell and consists of six square meters. The air conditioning here is also much worse. In order to be able to inhale and exhale air, I must stand by the window and open it. The window here is in the roof and I have no view on the outside world. The only thing I can behold is the sky. When I have to open the window in order to get oxygen, the sun burns me greatly. Even though the heat from the sun is so unpleasant, that I feel like I will get a heat stroke, I am forced to stay by the open window in order to get oxygen. I have very severe breathing problems here. "
Abdullah Ocalan, Imrali Prison Island Nov 2009.

The deliberate and planned killing of Abdullah Ocalan by the Turkish Generals will have severe and serious consequences worldwide and will destabilise Turkey and the Middle East for many years to come. The International Community must not let it happen!

STOP THE STATE KILLING OF ABDULLAH OCALAN!
Press Conference: 2pm, Wednesday 2nd December 2009
Kurdish Community Centre,11 Portland Gardens, Haringey, London N4 1HU.

(For more details please contact Arzu Pesman, Kurdish Federation in UK 07960302192)

Turkey Move to Kill Abdullah Ocalan!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 11:33:00 +0000

The Turkish authorities have taken an extraordinary step towards killing the leader of the Kurdish Freedom Movement, Abdullah Ocalan.

There is a dark and murderous plan that is unfolding on Imrali Island.

Since 1999, when Abdullah Ocalan was kidnapped and handed over to the Turkish authorities by a unified plot by US and others, he has been incarcerated in what the CPT condemned when they visited his prison cell in 2007.

The Turkish authorities have now began the final stage in the death of the leader of the Kurdish Movement. A death that would leave the Kurdish Freedom Struggle without a leader at the very time when such a leader is needed. And there is the motivation for killing him.

The Turkish psychological warfare department is moving in darker and more malicous ways than previously and this time the very life of the Kurdish leader is at stake.

Conditions, far from getting better, have got worse and the prisoners who have been moved to Imrali are probably state informers and provocetors, none are known to the Kurdish Freedom Movement as close to Ocalan.

In fact one of them is an ex PKK'er, one an apparent member of an extreme left wing group and the others did not want to be moved to Imrali.

The Kurdish Movement have responded already to these onimous events and young Kurdish youth are on the streets already.

It is the International Community that now need to respond by demanding that this threat to the life of Abdullah Ocalan is taken seriously and that all steps are taken to avoid his murder by the Turkish State. The future of Turkey and the entire region is dependent upon this. Should Abdullah Ocalan be removed by murder the consequences are so dire for all that it should not be allowed to happen.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION TO AVOID THE MURDER OF THE KURDISH LEADER ABDULLAH OCALAN!

This from a petition posted online:

The Turkish state and the government has long promised to the European Court and the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, CPT, to change the brutal isolating conditions that has been held towards the Kurdish PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan during eleven years on the Imrali island prison in the Sea of Marmara in Turkey.

This gave us hope that the isolation would be removed and that Ocalan's right to life and his human rights would be respected. According to reports from both the CPT and the European Court, the condition Ocalan lives in is a clear violation of all international laws regarding the respect of a prisoner, his human rights and human dignity are therefore not reasonable.

This fact threatens both his mental and physical health. That Ocalan's physical and mental health has significantly deteriorated by his confinement on Imrali and the conditions he is held captive in, is also witnessed by his relatives and his lawyers. It has long been said by the Turkish government that the conditions Ocalan has lived in during the recent ten years should change. The actual result of this change occurred by an emergency report that Ocalan himself, his lawyers and relatives have published for the national and the international community.

The report presents that the Turkish state has set up a new prison, which Ocalan was transferred to on Tuesday 17 November 2009. According to the Turkish Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin, nine other prisoners from different prisons around the country will also move there so that Ocalan will not be the sole prisoner on the island of Imrali. But no trace of this change has until now been recognized.

Ocalan is still the only prisoner in a prison which is ten times more isolating and the conditions which he lives in are much more inhumane than the previous prevailing conditions.

Although the Turkish Ministry of Justice indicate that obvious changes have been made at the newly built prison on the island in order to improve the living conditions of Ocalan, the reality is quite the opposite. In the new prison and in the new cell which Ocalan is in, much worse conditions exist compared to the previous prison he has been held in. Ocalan’s new cell is only six square meters, while the previous cell was 13 square meters.

The air conditioning is much worse than before, which leads to big difficulties in absorption of oxygen. The window is also extremely worse. It is constructed upwards and no oxygenated fresh air is let through. Its design prevents Ocalan from having a view of the outside world and the daylight that comes in from the window is very hot.

In his statement, on 18 November 2009, Ocalan describes his new living conditions by following:

"My new cell is half the size of my old cell and consists of six square meters. The air conditioning here is also much worse.

In order to be able to inhale and exhale air, I must stand by the window and open it.

The window here is built upwards and I have no view on the outside world. The only thing I can behold is the sky. When I have to open the window in order to get oxygen, the sun burns me greatly.

Even though the heat from the sun is so unpleasant, that I feel like I will get a heat stroke, I am forced to stay by the open window in order to get oxygen. I have very severe breathing problems here. "

The Kurdish PKK leader's brother Mehmet Ocalan, who recently visited his brother at the newly established prison, on 18 November 2009, said in an interview with the press that the sharp deterioration had been made on Ocalan's living conditions at the prison by informing the following:

"In the name of improvement clear deterioration has been made. The cell that my brother now is living in is a room of six square meters, but the former was thirteen square meters. The air conditioning is significantly much worse and my brother has great difficulty in inhalation and exhalation of air.

Ocalan said during the meeting to us that he feels that he at any time will be suffocated and that every time he tries to inhale air, it feels like his guts are coming out of his body.

My brother was also subjected to solitary confinement during our meeting with him. Previously, the distance between him and us was ten metres less when we met him, but now Ocalan was buried in a cage of glas and the distance between us was thirty metres. We had to yell to hear each other.

This was the worst meeting and the worst state we have seen him in during the ten years which Ocalan has been held in a Turkish prison. As Ocalan's family, we strongly protest against the Turkish government's actions against him. His deteriorated condition and state create considerable concern for us."

We, the Kurds in the Diaspora and Kurdish friends, would like to turn to Amnesty International & European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, CPT and all organizations which have the objective to work for humanity and human rights and we appeal for your humanity and your human attention on this serious issue.

The above mentioned factors all point to a system, which is twice as much worse isolating and painful, has been established at the new prison. This has occurred despite CPT's demands for improvement of the conditions.

In Amnesty International reports the case has been highlighted a number of times in the past and even the organization has made an appeal that the social and psychological isolation, which Ocalan is subjected to, should end.

Amnesty International has clearly expressed criticism against the CPT's latest report, which was published on 6 March 2008 and held a number of softer emphasizes against Turkey, on the case where it was revealed that Ocalan has been poisoned.

Amnesty International had through their head office in London stated that the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, CPT, was vague and weak in their indications and pressure on Turkey concerning the treatment and the poisoning of Ocalan.

According to Amnesty International reports and international criteria, isolation is an extensive and dangerous crime of a man's physical and mental well-being.

That a country like Turkey, who has signed on most of the European criterias and laws for a humane treatment of detainees in prisons, promising to improve Abdullah Ocalan's situation and living conditions, but are instead doing the exact opposite, is both appalling and unacceptable.

We hereby demand that Amnesty International and mainly that the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, CPT, give attention to the case and that you put this on your agenda.

We demand you to initiate immediate efforts and that you take actions against this brutal decomposition, where the aim is to slowly break down Abdullah Ocalan and thus conduct him into a life-threatening health condition - both mentally and physically.

We demand that a delegation from your organizations visits the Imrali island prison in Turkey in order to follow up and to pay attention to the new changes that have been made.

We demand CPT, who are responsible for this situation, to take their obligation, to fulfill their responsibility and to defend the rights the committee themselves have guaranteed.

That Abdullah Ocalan's death sentence was abolished was good news for everyone, but that the sentence was replaced by torture and painful isolation, which may be called as a white execution, is an inhumane fact which your organizations should not accept and therefore do everything in your power to both deter and prevent.

Petition:

We hereby demand that Amnesty International and mainly that the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, CPT, give attention to the case and that you put this on your agenda.

We demand you to initiate immediate efforts and that you take actions against this brutal decomposition, where the aim is to slowly break down Abdullah Ocalan and thus conduct him into a life-threatening health condition - both mentally and physically.

We demand that a delegation from your organizations visits the Imrali island prison in Turkey in order to follow up and to pay attention to the new changes that have been made.

We demand CPT, who are responsible for this situation, to take their obligation, to fulfill their responsibility and to defend the rights the committee themselves have guaranteed.

Read Abdullah Ocalan's words on his health conditions here.

Sign the Petition for better living conditions for Abdullah Ocalan here.

Statement of Kurdish Leader, Abdullah Ocalan on New Prison Conditions.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:07:00 +0000

Press statement of Abdullah Ocalan's legal team:
No progress, but aggravation of the isolation

Statement
To the press and public

During the consultation with our client Abdullah Ocalan on 18 November 2009 at Imrali Island, our client made the following statements in regard to his transferring into the newly built prison building:

“I have been transferred here on November, 17th. This place is worse than the one before. They are trying to present this as a progress, but in reality it's an aggravation of the isolation. The current room is 6 square meters, half the size of the previous room. Here they want to constrict me even more, aggravate my imprisonment conditions even more and urge me to surrender.

I already had respiratory problems, but now, here, I cannot breathe at all. The air in this cell is causing major problems for my respiratory system. The old cell was better ventilated. The sun burns right through the window. To be able to breathe, I have to lean against the window, but there the sun is burning. So I have to bear that in order to breathe at all.

The window is looking upwards, so I can see nothing but the sky. The former window was better, because of the airing and because I could actually see something.

I had no opportunity yet to see the other inmates that have been transferred here. The clerks told me I would be able to see them in a month, at the earliest.

Life here is physically tiring me. Isolation and imprisonment conditions are obviously worse here. I don't know if I will ever be able to get accustomed to this. There is no progress, only further regress.

They are selling my transfer here as a positive initiative, but reality is very much different. The only aim of the transfer is to reduce the pressure of the public opinion abroad.”

Asrin Law Office

Asmalı Mescit Mahallesi
Şeh Bender Sokak N:18 D:3
Tünel BEYOĞLU – İSTANBUL
Türkei
Tel: 0090-212-292 95 50 – 51

Online Petition for better conditions for Abdullah Ocalan.

Kurdish Freedom Fighters Have Newly Designed Website.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:06:00 +0000

HPG has a newly designed English Page of it's Website.

Check it out and bookmark it.

Adullah Ocalan: The PKK and I Have Proved We Are Ready For Peace.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:10:00 +0000

Abdullah Ocalan's Latest Comments from Imrali Prison.

Kurdish info 16.11.09 – ‘‘There are sections of the (Turkish) State who are for a solution and sections that are against. Who will come out victorious will depend on the struggle between these two sections. A new phase has been entered. It is important that this phase is comprehended,’’ said Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan.

‘‘I am a political prisoner, my situation must be understood,’’ he added, before saying that a new inquiry had begun into something he had said. ‘‘The USA and Britain are governing this place. They are trying to annihilate the Kurdish Freedom Movement by using me. This is the reason for the solitary confinement punishment and also this new inquiry. It is impossible for me to issue an instruction for war from here, it is not right either. I am just commenting on the situation. I am trying to establish what will happen before it does; for this they are beginning inquiries. Because of this they are also punishing my solicitors and putting pressurise on them.’’

If they want me to play my part they must open my path
‘‘I am like someone who is connected to a life support machine. They can pull the plug whenever they want. They are pulling the plug and putting it back in with things like disciplinary inquiries. My health is not well. There is a constant itch and a problem in the urinary system. I find it hard to breathe, it is stuffy in here, and I cannot get air. Furthermore, I constantly have to keep my eyes shut; I find it hard to blink. There is also a constant discharge in my throat. I cannot sleep. I feel uncomfortable when the air-conditioning is on. Winter is around the corner, it will get harder. It is a miracle to live even one day in here. I may die; my health is linked to these conditions. They do not want me to speak. If they are sincere for peace then I will play my role. If my path is not cleared I cannot play this role. If I go and speak to them (the PKK) I can convince them. I proved this with the arrival of the peace groups. I moved the guerrillas outside Turkey’s borders in 1999. I called for a ceasefire in 2006 and prolonged it three times. I wrote a Road Map and handed it in. I made calls for peace on numerous occasions and wrote my defence (books). I am doing all I can for peace but my conditions are inadequate. I need to be given lee-way if I am to play my role.’’

It was a big show and now it has ended
Evaluating the government, Öcalan said, ‘‘it is now clear what they will do, it was a big show and now it has ended. I could guess from before but we still needed to wait and see whether they were sincere for peace. The process when the first and second peace groups arrived (in 99) was not assessed and used in the right way. This is the third peace group. I wanted to assess the AKP’s sincerity. And it has become apparent that the AKP are not sincere… the power-centre that is controlling the CHP and MHP is also controlling the AKP. The power that is controlling them is also trying to control a part of the Kurds as well. This is the message they are giving to the DTP, if you do not accept our plan, we will annihilate you. This is why the DTP’s closure is being kept on the agenda. Hundreds of DTP members have been arrested. Much bigger operations could be carried out.’’

Öcalan, ‘‘they are filling the prisons with 12 year old children and then saying ‘look we are taking steps to get you out.’ They are publicising Kurdish departments in universities and Kurdish television as steps forward. The Kurds do not need a TV, they already have one. To give a TV channel is not a step; it is not a right anymore. The AKP is playing for Kurdish votes once again. They are trying to buy off Kurds with funds and credit drawn from the GAP project. By using the chieftains and sheikhs they (the AKP) are planning to bring the Kurds on their side. The CHP’s Onur Öymen is asking for this rebellion to be quashed just like the Dersim rebellion. This is their mentality. This is why, to comprehend this mentality, I am saying political academies should be formed. These things need to be discussed in political academies.’’

The powers that are for and against a solution will do battle in this new phase
Öcalan said ‘‘with the arrival of the peace groups, the PKK and I have proved that we are ready for peace. In fact the State didn’t approach the arrival negatively, their release was positive. A positive environment was created, but MHP leader Bahçeli sabotaged it, he created a negative atmosphere. As you can see once again elimination and annihilation is on the agenda. There is a section of the State that is in favour of a solution. However, they are not strong enough. Whichever section is victorious in this struggle, the AKP will take their side. The AKP have always been on the side of the powerful. There are sections in the State and in the AKP that are for and against a solution. Who will come out victorious depends on the struggle within the State. A new phase has been entered. If a positive development occurs, I will still play my part. I will fulfil my responsibilities.’’

They are trying to continue the contra (Gladio) activity which began in 1987 with incidents like the Bilge Village massacre. There are things which the village guards are doing, these are contra activities controlled from a single centre. It has been uncovered that the Bilge Village massacre was co-ordinated and carried out with the approval of soldiers. They wanted to blame the incident on the PKK but couldn’t find any PKK members to make responsible.’’ Öcalan once again appealed to the Ergenekon prosecutor regarding the incidents and crimes that were blamed on the PKK and said that the prosecutor should come and listen to him.

Öcalan touched upon the role of Ergenekon regarding its role in blocking a solution by citing examples from recent history. ‘‘Özal was sincere. He didn’t know what would happen to him. Erbakan also tried to solve this issue. They did not kill him but overthrew him. Karadayı and Kıvrıkoğlu (generals) knew of the US policies and Ergenekon. In fact they wanted to resolve the issue. However, Ergenekon was too strong. Ecevit wanted to do some things. Bahçeli prevented this, he was specially assigned. They were awaiting a coup, but the US did not permit it. Bahçeli is trying to prevent a solution now as well. He is doing the job he has been given. Baykal has also been assigned specially to prevent a solution. Baykal was brought to prominence by JITEM who staged a coup inside the CHP. They toppled Altan Öymen and brought Deniz Baykal to the top. There are some democrats within the CHP who want a solution. There are also some sincere people who are democrats within the AKP.’’

Source:KurdishInfo

The Day When The Kurdish People's Freedom Fighters Arrived in Kurdistan!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:02:00 +0000

Thank you to Newroz2009, a very good Italian/Kurdish Website.

Abdullah Ocalan's Interview with Greek TV. 1996.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:12:00 +0000

It is being reported that the Kurdish leader, Mr Abdullah Ocalan has been joined by 5 other Kurdish Freedom Fighters incarcerated by the Turkish Government. More psychological warfare giving the impression that progress is being made.

What the Kurdish people would like to see is Abdullah Ocalan being released but at least to have a new photograph of what he looks like now.

Here he is below giving an interview to Greek TV in 1996.

6th London Kurdish Film Festival Begins!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:56:00 +0000

20th-30th November 2009.

Here is the programme.

Stop Iranian State Murder of Kurdish Freedom Fighters!

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:40:00 +0000

On November 11, the Kurdish prisoner Ihsan Fetahiyan was executed by the Iranian regime in the Sine prison. And now 30-year old innocent Şerko Maarfi named Kurdish man has been put in a cell to be executed soon!

According to information received about the death penalty with the claim that 30-year-old Şerko Maarfi is a member of the PJAK. Now he is in a prison cell in the Seqiz prison.

Death penalty without hearings!

Şerko Maarfi is birth registered in the city of Bane, with the claim that he is a PJAK member on October 2, 2008 he was arrested in Bane. Queries and torture lasted for several months and then in January 2009, by the Court Maarfi was claimed to be in a "war against Allah" and was given death penalty on a charge.

Moreover non-intelligence elements of the regime, threatening the family of any reaction or protest concerning the Maarfi'ye not be asked. Over the four days before the execution Fetahiyan'ın Ihsan Iranian regime wants to be executed Maarfi'yi this time.

PJAK to be arrested in the case of Kurdistan Sine Ihsan Fetahiyan November 11 morning in the Eastern swing was in prison in the city center. The Kurds have reacted to these executions, the execution of the campaign was launched to stop.

Letifi is also under threat of execution!

26 years old Hebibullah Letifi who was held in the same prisson as Ehsan Fetahiyan, is also under threat of execution. Letifi in 2207 in the city of Sine was arrested along with human rights defenders Hana Abdi, Yasir Guli and Ferdi Muradi. In August 12 the death penalty was given by the court. Letifi was put in single cells in early October, with Fetahiyan to be executed.

12 prisoners also to be executed!

From the cases of PKK and PJAK in Iran so far at least 17 people were given the death penalty. However, the death penalty for about 4 of them was canceled. Hasan Hikmet Demir, a PJAK militant was executed after going through severe tortures. Teachers are also among the 12 people who are waiting in the death corridor: Kurdish teachers; Ferzad Kemanger, and Eli Heyderiyan Ferhad Wekili, student Hebibulla Letifi. Other prisoners in the PJAK trial; Jasmine, Rustem Arkiya, Zeynep Celaliyan, Şerko Maarfi, Ferhat employees, Ramazan Ahmet, Enwer Sakir Rostemi and Baki.

TAKE ACTION TO HALT THESE RACIST MURDERS!

Khalil Bahramian, Shirko Moaarefi’s lawyer in an interview with campaign of civil and political prisoners rights by confirming the news of Shirko’s transfer to solitary confinement to execute his death sentence announced: “this verdict is contrary to all legal standard laws and he will not stop until the day he save’s Shirko”.

Bahramian has asked all the media and human rights activists to not remain indifference during these critical days and by informing and illuminating public take action against this injustice verdict.

Dr. Khalil Bahramian, Justice Lawyer 00989121463518

Last news on Facebook :
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&gid=182030936681

petition:
http://www.gopetition.com/online/32085.html

Urgent: Please everyone do everything you can to Save Shirko Maarefi!

1) Sign and Spread the PETITION @
http://www.gopetition.com/online/32085.html

2) SEND APPEALS as SOON as POSSIBLE, TIME IS RUNNING OUT!
LETTER /APPEAL:

Your Excellency,
I’m concerned about the fate of Shirko Moarefi a 30 year old member of Iran’s Kurdish minority sentenced to death. In preparation for his pending execution, he's been taken to the quarantine of the Saghez prison, where he has been prison since last November and he has suffered various ill-treatments and abuse.

He's also said to be in a bad general condition, suffering from physical and psychological trauma.

Shirko Moarefi has been sentenced to death for what is described as
“crimes against the security of the state” and “enmity against God” .

I’m concerned that these scheduled executions could be a reprisal for a spate of assassinations and attempted assassinations of officials which took place during September 2009, in the northwestern province of Kordestan. With these crimes Shirko Moarefi have nothing to do.

That’s why I respectfully ask you to immediately stop his execution and to commute his death sentence.

I also ask you to consider the opportunity to impose an immediate and comprehensive moratorium on all executions, as a first step towards ending the use of this punishment: the international image of the Islamic Republic of Iran could remarkably take advantage of this choice.
Sincerely,

COPY/ PAST and SEND TO:

a) Head of the Judiciary

Ayatollah Sadeqh Larijani, Office of the Head of the Judiciary, Pasteur St., Vali Asr Ave. south of Serah-e Jomhouri, Tehran 1316814737, Islamic Republic of Iran
Email: Via WEB SITE, http://www.dadiran.ir/tabid/75/Default.aspx

1st starred box: your given name;
2sd starred box: your family name;
3rd starred box: your email address

b) Governor of Kordestan Province
Esmail Najjar

Email: In Persian and Kurdish, send via feedback form on the website:
http://www.ostan-kd.ir/Default.aspx?tabId=150&cv=4@0_1

In English, French or other languages, use the feedback form on the website:
http://en.ostan-kd.ir/Default.aspx?TabID=59

Statement of Kurdish Political Leadership, KCK, on Recent Developments.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:02:00 +0000

Kurdish Info 09.11.2009- KCK Chairman Of Executive Council declared 5 points : " The greatest question of the Turkish Republic in its 87th year, which is the Kurdish question, has entered the process of resolution. Both the internal and external conditions, which will transform the question into a genuinely permanent and just peace, are available. The unilateral ceasefire decided upon by our movement, the road-map that was prepared by our leader and our peoples’ call for peace, demonstrate the commitment of our movement and people to peace and a democratic resolution."

The internal and external conditions in which the policy of denial of the Kurdish people perpetrated by the Turkish state could be carried out no longer exist thanks to the struggle of the people of Kurdistan for freedom, democracy and peace led by Leader Apo. In the face of the powerful insistence on freedom demonstrated by our Movement and people, the Turkish state is trying to legitimate its existence in Kurdistan by restoring its system of denial and annihilation. The main purpose is to overtly apply the policies of assimilation, dissolution and annihilation, by exterminating the Kurdistan freedom movement and enslaving the people of Kurdistan. It is for this reason that especially the president, prime minister and the minister of internal affairs, have not taken any practical steps for the resolution of the question while uttering statements that merely sound positive. They aim at annihilation instead of reconciliation. On the other hand, the MHP-CHP and Turkish Chief of General Staff continue with their traditional insistence on siding with the policy of denial-annihilation.

The policy, which was initially characterised as openness to the resolution of Kurdish issue, and transformed today into a project carried out under the name of national unity, has acquired the name of annihilation of the guerrilla and the PKK following the recent statements of the authorities. Discussions that the ministry of internal affairs is engaged in with some sections, diplomatic relations that the ministry of foreign affairs is working on, as well as the meetings of the prime minister with US authorities, are not focused on the resolution of the Kurdish question, but targeting the annihilation of the PKK.

In the meantime, the annihilation operations against the guerrilla for the liberation of Kurdistan, which are carried out in spite of the unilateral ceasefire announced by our movement on 13th April, operations against the institutions in the political and social arena, the reactivated extrajudicial killings and massacre of Kurdish children, are all continuing without losing momentum.

In the face of the activities of the AKP government and state to frustrate our peoples’ endeavours for a resolution, our Leadership has demonstrated its clear commitment by deciding to send three peace groups to Turkey from Kandil, Maxmur, and Europe in order to unblock the peace process. However, the MHP, CHP, president, prime minister, ministry of internal affairs and the Chief of General Staff have all provoked the racist and chauvinist sections, by evaluating the meeting of our people with the peace envoys as a public provocation, in order to pre-empt the steps taken by our movement to eliminate the obstacles before the resolution of the question. However, sending the peace envoys and their meeting with our people are the expressions of the insistent and determined stance of our Leadership, movement and people on peace. But they did not tolerate this.
The AKP government has put the resolution of Kurdish question on the agenda of the parliament, although with delay. The discussion of the issue in the right and democratic manner is as important as its appearance before the parliament, in terms of Turkish history. The reason for this is that the question has never been correctly defined and evaluated in the light of correct solutions. Analysing the Kurdish Question as terrorism, calling on Kurdish guerrillas to surrender, to ban the rights of people to exercise their culture including education in mother tongue allowing Kurdish language as an optional subject of study in education and refusal to recognise the position of our leader Abdullah Ocalan are not ‘new initiatives’ for democratisation. Just as no issue can be resolved without an authority, there has never been a discussion, dialogue or agreement that has not been carried out without the free will of all the parties who are in conflict.

More importantly, the fact that the AKP government gives priority to the surrender of the guerrilla instead of dialogue and reconciliation seeks to undermine the guerrilla resistance either by failing to understand or pretending not to understand. Such an imposition means firstly to disregard the will of Kurdish people and insisting on turning a blind eye to the reality.

The AKP still evaluates the issue as a matter of power and AKP policy. It wants to develop a definition of the Kurdish question and a resolution that suits its own purposes. This is the basis on which it wants to render its power permanent. For this, it is taking a step back considering the approaching general elections, in the face of the racist-chauvinist pressures of the CHP and MHP. This requires the status of the issue to be disregarded, hence its incorrect evaluation.

The manner in which the Kurdish issue is approached is the expression of the approach to the existence of Turkey and the shape of its future. The Kurdish question cannot also be evaluated in accordance with a simplistic and tactical perspective. The issue cannot be resolved by encouraging the powers in the south to put political and military pressure on the PKK.

It is possible to resolve the Kurdish issue only within the framework of equal and free fraternity of Turkish and Kurdish peoples and with democratic autonomy, without infringing the borders of Turkey. It is known how the similar problems have been resolved in Turkey. This firstly requires dialogue and negotiation. Recognition of Leader Apo, the PKK and the legal political movement as the interlocutors is an issue that needs to be discussed and clarified. This should be seen as the natural aspect of the issue at hand, by keeping it out of every discussion. Unless this is done, it would be impossible to make progress in the resolution of the issue.

On the other hand, constructing scenarios, evaluating the number of people, who may arrive from Maxmur etc and sending some people to Turkey, who are outside the process and not party to the issue, will not contribute to its resolution. This attitude does not mean anything other than deceiving the public and pursuing narrow political purposes. The issue can never be resolved in this manner.

The fact that the ROAD MAP that has been prepared by Kurdish Leader Abdullah Ocalan in association with the peaceful and democratic political solution of the Kurdish question has not been presented to the public is a serious mistake. It is imperative to rectify the mistake and present the Road Map to the public.

The continuation of political and military operations while talking about resolution and peace renders the statements of Turkish state and government doubtful. It is absolutely essential to cease these political and military operations in order to eliminate this doubt. The Kurdish issue can be resolved not through some limited amendments in law and regulations, but only on the basis of real constitutional changes. This requires Turkey to create the conditions in which free and equal coexistence of the identity of Kurdish people should be constitutionally guaranteed as part of the democratic peoples of Turkey.

At this stage, restrictions on the Kurdish language, which is one of the oldest and deep-rooted languages of the world, or granting it the mere status of a course or study option, will not help the resolution of the issue. Kurdish should be the language of education from primary school to university. Its use and development, and experiencing its historical value, culture, art and geographical roots, should be seen as part of these rights.

It is necessary to take concrete steps towards the development of the organisation of Kurdish society, engagement in democratic politics, and the right to free speech. As an expression of the sincerity of the Turkish state towards peace and a democratic resolution, special military powers should be withdrawn from the village, town and cities of Kurdistan, and the system of village guards should be abolished. Conditions should be created to allow the people of Kurdistan to live free from police oppression, and establish and develop their lives in security with sufficient opportunities.

Discussion of the Kurdish issue in the Turkish parliament is an opportunity. The parliament should be able to discuss the development of a permanent resolution, but not through narrow political calculations and threats. They should make the decision to take serious steps towards peace for the resolution of this issue, which has been a matter of controversy since 1925. The parliament can demonstrate positive approach if they can discuss the matter within this framework. If this occurs, the Kurdish Liberation Movement would also fulfil their own responsibilities. It should be clearly understood that an approach based on hostility and narrow political interests will not serve the resolution of the issue in any way.

Martyr Ehsan Fatahian Brutally Murdered by the Iranian Regime.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:43:00 +0000

The Guardian: Iran Executes Kurdish Activist.

What Will Tomorrow Bring?

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:36:00 +0000

As racist attacks against DTP and Kurdish people across Turkey increases, the Turkish parliament meet tomorrow to discuss the 'Kurdish Inititaive'.

It will be a day of nationalistic rheteric as it is also the anniversary of the death of Mustafa Kemal.

Here is a good summary of the story so far from Bloombergs.

UPDATE ON THE 10th Nov 2009.

A motion was passed today that the Turkish Parliament will discuss the Kurdish Democratic Initiative on Thursday 12th November 2009.

Learn Kurdish at the KCC.

noreply@blogger.com (Hevallo) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000

If your in London and want to learn Kurdish then your lucky!

There are very popular and successful Kurdish classes at the moment being taught at the Kurdish Community Centre in Green Lanes.

Turks, Kurds and non Turks and Kurds are having fun and learning Kurdish every Friday, 1900- 2100

Come along and join in.

Complete beginners especially welcome.

Kurdish Community Centre

11 Portland Gardens,

Haringey

London

Nearest tube: Manor House.