Millennia after the establishment of patriarchy (what I call the “first major sexual rupture”) women were once again dealt a blow from which they are still struggling to recover. I am referring to the intensification of patriarchy through the monotheistic religions.
The mentality of rejecting the natural society deepened in the feudal social system. Religious and philosophical thought constituted the new society’s dominant mentality. In the same way that the Sumerian society had synthesised the values of Neolithic society into its own new system, the feudal society synthesised the moral v...
The vein of the revolution/counter revolution scheme of historical materialism, I suggest that we term the remarkable turning points in the history of the relationship between the sexes sexual rupture. History has seen two of these ruptures and, I predict, will see another in the future.
In the social ages preceding civilisation, the organised force of the “strong man” existed for the sole purposes of trapping animals and defence against outside danger. It is this organised force that coveted the family-clan unit that the woman had established as a product of her emotional labour. The tak...
History has often witnessed grave errors, which have led to the exact opposite of the desired outcomes being fought for. It will happen again. As long as human life forms exist, they will understand how to arrive at a more correct scientific expression of the noble ideals of equality and freedom and will ensure a decisive advance along the correct path and achieve success.
Can Socialism Become An Alternative Form Of Civilisation? «Socialist ideology, and the socialist system it created in opposition to the capitalist system, failed to become a different civilisation. Whether as a result ...
To all those friends whose heart is ablaze with the fire of Newroz for peace and freedom! Merhaba!
I greet our people who have transformed the Newroz fire into an awakening and a festival of democracy in Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilisations.
I convey my love through you to all the youth and women of the country.
I call on all those whose heart has room for peace and hears our voice, to all Turkey, to unite in the spirit of the solidarity of centuries.
I celebrate the festival of the fraternal peoples of the Middle East and Asia that have nourished the history of civilisations.
I s...
My dear women comrades...
For me, the freedom of women is more important than land and culture. A woman must be a freedom fighter. You must liberate yourselves. Nothing has affected me, both with sorrow and anger, and elation and enthusiasm, as much as the story of women's slavery and freedom."Women must take their own decisions. They must have their own free spaces, places you can determine your lives. Make the search for freedom the basis of your work. Don't complain, be creative. When 3 or 4 women come together produce a solution. Trust your femininity.
For a people ...
In a recent interview with Deniz Kendal from the ANF, Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) Executive Committee Member Murat Karayilan said that the group’s imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan’s well-being was under threat and that an attack on him would be disastrous for Turkey.
Karayilan added that the ‘Battalion of Immortals,’ an elite force within the PKK would be fully activated and target politicians involved in the decision to eliminate Ocalan.
The high-ranking PKK member also commented on the Kurdistan Communities’ Union’s (KCK) recent call for a national Kurdish congress.
‘Targeting Ocal...
The need for a national congress for the national-democratic representation of the will of the Kurdish people is unquestionable. In this regard, the footing attained in the Summer of 2013 has now matured to an even further level. Many were expecting this historical dream to materialise; the inability in doing so, has left the Kurdish public disappointed.
National unity is a historical problem for the Kurds. The incapability of unifying is one of the main reasons as to why the Kurds are still exposed to cultural genocide. One of the main ambitions of every national liberation movement has ...
No one can doubt the socialist identity of the Kurdish freedom movement and the socialist identity of the Kurdish people's leader Mr. Abdullah Ocalan. The Kurdish freedom movement and its leader define themselves as the inheritors of all the socialist strugglers in human history.
Of course there are differences between the PKK and other socialist organisations in Turkey. The PKK has restructured itself as a result of extensive self-criticism and a thorough criticism of classical socialism and its practiced forms. It sees classical socialist theory as insufficient. The PKK believes that cl...
I must firstly state that the Kurdish freedom movement's quest in finding a democratic solution to the Kurdish question is not something new; this quest is at least twenty years old.
It is well known that the Kurdish freedom movement has always adopted a modest and consistent approach to this end. During these twenty years the Kurdish freedom movement's proposals for a solution have been coherent with Turkey's territorial dignity and have been based on a fundamental democratisation of Turkey. The following duality has been a basic principle for our movement: without a solution to the Kurd...
The AKP government is completely disregarding the opinion of the people. The AKP government believes that it can resolve everything by force; and it seems to take confidence in its being the biggest police state in the world.
It is very difficult for a political power to continue its existence for very much longer once it has begun to require the services of the police force to maintain its authority. The AKP government rather than strengthening itself through democratic progress, it is finding itself relying on the force of the police. We can see a similar approach by the state tow...
Legitimate Defence
The Third Way in Syria
If certain circles are in favour of a Syria in which no single force is dominant, then the position of the Kurds is pivotal
Erdogan recently visited the USA and it seems as if a comprehensive discussion was undertaken. This is at best, rare. The primary agenda was Syria. Within this framework the Kurdish question was a subheading. To be more precise these headings were discussed one within another.
The results of Erdogan’s visit to the USA have acknowledged the fact that the stance of the PKK and the Kurds of Western Kurdistan during this Syrian crisis has been the most accurate. It seems as if the USA, Russia, China and the West as a whole have brought themselves to a similar point. The Kurds have established themselves as a third way in Syria. They did not side with either the current regime or an opposition completely lacking in democratic and liberationist characteristics. Both sides were deemed insufficient. Consequently, they are proving in practice that a third way is possible. In fact, they are extending their claim that without an alternative to these ‘sides’ the crisis in Syria cannot be overcome. Currently the USA, Europe, Russia and China are in the search for a third way.
Bashar Esad will leave Syria and the Baas regime will cease to exist, but a Syria in which political Islam will be sovereign will not be acceptable. There will not be a single hegemony. It seems as if a democratic Syria in which all forces will coexist is inevitable. Political Islamists will not be side-lined as they were by the Baas regime, but they will also not be the primary power holders. A democratic reconciliation that will enable the coexistence of all ethnic, religious and social sections of the community will materialise. In this system the Kurds, Alevis and all other ethnic and religious communities will be able to express themselves and organise their societal affairs. Sunni Islam will also be able to express itself freely without the need for the establishment of its own hegemony.
This reality will make minorities like the Kurds and the Alevis a fundamental basis of democratisation in Syria. The Kurds have already proven this. The Alevis will eventually see that their one time hegemonic status will no longer persist and therefore it will be in their interest to strengthen the democratic mind-set. The Alevis can no longer insist on supporting an authoritarian rule. From now on any such insistence will endanger the ability of the Alevis to participate in the free and democratic future of Syria. Therefore, their very situation demands of them to be a force for democratic change. A Syria in which political Islam is not the hegemonic power is something that the Alevis can support. This option will also be strongly advocated by the Armenians, Assyrians, Yezidis, not to mention Women’s organisations and leftist democrats.
The USA, the EU and Russia will have to settle for a truly democratic Syria. Erdogan’s visit to the USA has shown this. The message to Turkey has been to not make itself an obstacle in front of this type of development. From now on, Turkey will stop supporting the efforts of radical Islamists. The message to the other more political Islamists that Turkey is in relationship with will be somewhat different: “consolidate your political existence and we will consolidate your positions in the newly formed Syria”. Turkey has been made to accept and adopt this new policy.
This policy does not completely fall in line with the Kurdish project; there are important differences. These forces will obviously be wanting to place their own collaborators within the system. However, the Kurds will be party to the third way solution in Syria. The Kurds will have their status and freedom accepted. In a democratised Syria their current gains will be protected; because for a Syria that wants to adopt the third way, this is imperative. If certain circles are in favour of a Syria in which no single force is dominant, then the position of the Kurds is pivotal. The moderate seeming opposition in Syria are in essence nationalists, hence its conservatism in regards to Kurdish rights. However, even they are in no position to reject the rights and freedoms of the Kurdish people. This is because the rejection of the rights of the Kurdish people is only possible in an authoritarian hegemony; the circumstances in the region, however, no longer allow for any such hegemony.
Esad, it seems, is on his way out, but the structure of the state is not about to be completely changed. The Baas party will continue to exist and Arab nationalism will also make itself felt. This Baas party however, will base itself on Sunni Arabs. The position of the Alevi Arabs necessitates that they steer clear of nationalism and the alienation of other communities. The political preferences of the Alevis will change in parallel with the formation of ‘new Syria’. The Alevis and the Kurds must be seen as the guarantors of a democratic Syria. The comprehension of this fact by international powers is a positive development. The current impasse has forced them to this. Turkey, after realising that the AKP’s policies were ineffective, has had to reluctantly approve of this new policy.
Erdogan’s statement that ‘we will oppose terrorism’ is meaningful. By this he does not mean the PYD, as he used to. Although in the meetings with the USA ‘the threat from PYD’ was mentioned, the organisation taht is seen as terrorist in Syria is the El-Nusra front, in other words, Al-Qaeda. The USA, the EU, Russia and China will take note of the opposition forces, but they will also move to isolate those that they have deemed as terrorist. Once this new project has matured and starts being deployed, those that stand in its way will also be done away with. Anyone wishing to prolong the conflict and sustain instability will also be eradicated. Any force that is not interested in becoming the new hegemonic force in Syria, but is hoping to take part in a democratic Syria will be able to do so. However, the new constitution will stand in the way of anyone fostering ambitions of being the new dictators of Syria.
These new circumstances will bring problems for Turkey and those organisations that it previously had ties with. Turkey, who has secret relations with Al-Qaeda in Iraq and supported this front in Syria, is now faced with an important decision; just as it has previously cut off strong ties it once had with Iran and the current Syrian regime, it must now do the same with organisations like Al-Qaeda. In short, Turkey’s previous approach of trying to please everyone has come to an abrupt end. Turkey is once again reorienting itself in-line with the Western camp that it has always been a part of. No longer will it make any incongruous outbursts. Saying this, if Turkey is successful in solving its Kurdish question and remains in pursuance of its own process of democratisation, than this will no doubt widen its area of manoeuvrability in the International arena. In the 21st century, the only way this external area of manoeuvrability can expand is through internal democratisation. It is extremely clear that from now on without extensive democratisation or without the formation of a democratic society, no force can adopt anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist policies. In Turkey this road passes through the solution of the Kurdish and Alevi questions and the question of radical democratisation.
It seems that one of the central outcomes of the AKP’s visit to the USA was an agreement on a Syrian project in which there is no place for a political Islamist hegemony. If the AKP, however, rather than pursuing hegemonic aspirations decides to insist on a democratised Turkey, it will firstly strengthen its own political foothold, and secondly, it will expand its scope of manoeuvrability in the face of international pressure.
Capitalist modernity has been forced to apply for a third way in Syria. Turkey has been brought to a stage where it too must solve its Kurdish question and also transform Turkey into a fully democratic country in which no community is hegemonic. The PKK leader saw an opportunity for exactly this and this is why he initiated the process of democratic solution. If this process is capped with success then it will not only be Turkey that is democratised, but the process itself will be a model for the solution of all problems encompassing the region. If Turkey really does want to be an effective force in the region, than it really must do so within the framework of democratic transformation. Only if Turkey becomes a beacon of democratic transformation can it have a positive impact on the developments in Syria. Contrary developments, however, will drag Turkey back to its previously ineffective role. Consequently, Turkey will only be a thorn in the side of all neighbouring countries; that which neighbouring countries will only want to neutralise.
Our sincere hope is that Turkey chooses to become a beacon of democracy and freedom as opposed to anything else.
In a recent interview with Deniz Kendal from the ANF, Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) Executive Committee Member Murat Karayilan said that the group’s imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan’s well-being was under threat and that an attack on him would be disastrous for Turkey.
Karayilan added that the ‘Battalion of Immortals,’ an elite force within the PKK would be fully activated and target politicians involved in the decision to eliminate Ocalan.
The high-ranking PKK member also commented on the Kurdistan Communities’ Union’s (KCK) recent call for a national Kurdish congress.
‘Targeting Ocalan will be disastrous for Turkey’
Deniz Kendal: KCK Executive Council Member Zubeyir Aydar spoke during the Kurdish Conference at the European Parliament and said that the AKP and MHP were working on a project to murder Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan. A...
The need for a national congress for the national-democratic representation of the will of the Kurdish people is unquestionable. In this regard, the footing attained in the Summer of 2013 has now matured to an even further level. Many were expecting this historical dream to materialise; the inability in doing so, has left the Kurdish public disappointed.
National unity is a historical problem for the Kurds. The incapability of unifying is one of the main reasons as to why the Kurds are still exposed to cultural genocide. One of the main ambitions of every national liberation movement has been to construct a national unity. The embodiment of this would be a national congress representing the national will.
At the beginning of the 1970s, freedom struggles were sprouting across all four parts of Kurdistan; these movements had targeted the ...
No one can doubt the socialist identity of the Kurdish freedom movement and the socialist identity of the Kurdish people's leader Mr. Abdullah Ocalan. The Kurdish freedom movement and its leader define themselves as the inheritors of all the socialist strugglers in human history.
Of course there are differences between the PKK and other socialist organisations in Turkey. The PKK has restructured itself as a result of extensive self-criticism and a thorough criticism of classical socialism and its practiced forms. It sees classical socialist theory as insufficient. The PKK believes that classical socialism is not anti-capitalist enough and is too involved with the state; whereas the state is a tool of suppression. To topple a state in order to create a new one is not revolutionary practice, rather, to surpass, topple or minimize the hegem...
I must firstly state that the Kurdish freedom movement's quest in finding a democratic solution to the Kurdish question is not something new; this quest is at least twenty years old.
It is well known that the Kurdish freedom movement has always adopted a modest and consistent approach to this end. During these twenty years the Kurdish freedom movement's proposals for a solution have been coherent with Turkey's territorial dignity and have been based on a fundamental democratisation of Turkey. The following duality has been a basic principle for our movement: without a solution to the Kurdish question Turkey cannot democratise, and without a democratisation of Turkey the Kurdish question cannot be solved.
The Kurdish freedom movement is a socialist and anti-capitalist movement. It is opposed to the culture of capitalism and its social an...
The AKP government is completely disregarding the opinion of the people. The AKP government believes that it can resolve everything by force; and it seems to take confidence in its being the biggest police state in the world.
It is very difficult for a political power to continue its existence for very much longer once it has begun to require the services of the police force to maintain its authority. The AKP government rather than strengthening itself through democratic progress, it is finding itself relying on the force of the police. We can see a similar approach by the state towards Turkey's most important problem: the Kurdish problem. Although guerrillas of the Kurdistan freedom movement have been pulling out of Turkey's borders the state is yet to make any move towards democratization. The Kurdish freedom movement is taking t...
There were two specific characteristics of the local elections held in Turkey on the 30th of March. The first was the fact that the election was a showdown between the AKP and the Fetullah Gulen movement; or, to be even more precise, a showdown between Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Fetullah Gulen.
The second distinct characteristic was the head-to-head struggle between the BDP and the AKP in Kurdistan. This can also be defined as the struggle between the organised face of the Kurdish political struggle, the BDP, and representing the Turkish state, the AKP.
In terms of both of these main characteristics, the local elections was more a referendum. As a matter of fact, during the heated debates leading up to the election, all sides uttered this very word.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) were barely ab...
If certain circles are in favour of a Syria in which no single force is dominant, then the position of the Kurds is pivotal
Erdogan recently visited the USA and it seems as if a comprehensive discussion was undertaken. This is at best, rare. The primary agenda was Syria. Within this framework the Kurdish question was a subheading. To be more precise these headings were discussed one within another.
The results of Erdogan’s visit to the USA have acknowledged the fact that the stance of the PKK and the Kurds of Western Kurdistan during this Syrian crisis has been the most accurate. It seems as if the USA, Russia, China and the West as a whole have brought themselves to a similar point. The Kurds have established themselves as a third way in Syria. They did not side with either the current regime or an opposition completely lacking in demo...
President of Kurdish Democratic Confederation (KCK) Murat Karayilan said they extended the unilateral ceasefire against Turkey after receiving a letter from Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan.
Karayilan said it was only possible to extend the ceasefire if Ocalan's power was brought into the process. And as soon as the leadership of the Kurdistan Worker's Party received the 5 page letter they decided to declare a ceasefire until the general elections in June 2011.
"Our leader Ocalan saw the positive attitude of the state or the negotiating team for a solution (for the Kurdish Question)(...) and sent us a letter which calls for extension of unilateral ceasefire" Karayılan said.
He also said that the five conditions should be met by the Turkish state for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish Question.
PKK demanded demanded to stop military and ...
MARTYR ZERDEŞT DERSİMİ-ALİ GEZER
The best place to succeed is the road and the road passes through the mountains. The mountains are not dead yet. The conditions of the mountain are more suitable for the struggle despite all their difficulties. When one ascends the mountain, the person looks down from the hill and does not underestimate others. On the contrary, it first looks at mountains and then oneself from the mountains. One better notices how small one is, how much one removed from nature, and how low one is pushed. The reason for this is undoubtedly both the consciousness that is gained and the stance of nature. Air, soil, sound, colours, vitality, cold and warm, night and day ... Everything is the inspiration to encourage people to re-shape. This is also an important reason why we have to become resistance from the top to bott...
Comrade Yücel joins the ranks of the guerrilla from the Amed County in 1999. After a short period of time, he goes to the Soran area due to the withdrawal of the guerrilla to the south. After the Martyr Ayhan camp, he joins the year 2000 southern war to break the siege of the PUK peshmergas.
The occupation, the massacre and the shadow of migration had been circulating on Kurdistan for thousands of years like black clouds. That is, until the birth of the light that were to tear apart all the dark clouds. This light was so burning that it was a coup for all backward minds. The light was so burning that the earth was filled with enthusiasm and the seeds bursting from the soil, turning into a flower, and becoming the fruit that would feed the whole humanity. The brave sons of the holy lands were to awaken thirsty to freedom, and have real evidence against all kinds of persecution and injustice.
You were the true child of Botan, you the noble daughter of Botan. In our liberation struggle, Botan fired the first bullet to colonialism, co-operation and reaction. Its mountains are a place of freedom.Botan is the place of resistance, freedom in Kurdish history. The PKK became the heart of the fight for freedom. In this area where the games of the reactionary system have never ceased, the protection of Kurdish roots with resistance has become the truth that people of the region have not given up throughout history. Botan has created legends, heroes. You, beautiful comrade, became the simplest, most rebellious truth of resistance by not falling into the traps of enemy reaction. You, without being in search of unfathomable dreams, fell into searches after breathing in the air of freedom at the young age. You wanted to fly, to wing, to ...