Kurdistan Info Bulletin #1 - Winter 1994/95 Index: 1) Introduction 2) The Turkish Army Is Systematically Burning Kurdish Villages 3) Kurdistan Is Burning! 4) Ozgur Ulke Offices Bombed 5) Statement From Ozgur Ulke Editor 6) "Our Movement Will Continue To Grow" - Excerpt From An Interview With Abdullah Ocalan, PKK General Secretary 7) For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! 16 Years Of The PKK 8) Interview With ARGK Regional Commander 9) PKK European Spokesperson Arrested 10) Kurdish Youth Murdered By German Police 11) Police Attack Kurdish Protests In Mannheim 12) Deportation Is Murder! Solidarity With The Kurds! 13) Letter From Leyla Zana 14) Kurdish MP's Sentenced 15) Kurds Resist Criminalization In Germany 16) Joint Statement From Kurdish Groups In Germany 17) GSG-9 Storm Kurdish Cultural Gathering 18) Kurds Sentenced For Consulate Take-Over 1) Introduction The Kurdish national liberation struggle has consistently been an important theme in our magazine Arm The Spirit. Since we did not publish an issue in 1994, we collected a vast amount of documents and news items related to the struggle of PKK over the course of the year. We are now publishing some of these texts in an independent publication, the Kurdistan Info Bulletin. As 1995 will be an important and eventful year for the Kurdish resistance, both in Kurdistan and in exile, we are committed to publishing this info bulletin on a regular basis as a gesture of concrete solidarity and in order to inform the North American left about the Kurdish struggle. We plan to publish the second issue of this bulletin shortly before Newroz in March 1995. Berxwedan Jiyane! Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada e-mail: ats@etext.org 2) The Turkish Army Is Systematically Burning Kurdish Villages The Turkish army's offensive against the Kurds is continuing. Every day, witnesses report civilian casualties. Since the end of September, the army has been forcing Kurds out of their villages in the province of Dersim (Tunceli) and neighboring provinces. According to reports from human rights agencies, as well as spokespersons for the expelled villagers, more than 30 villages in Tunceli have been destroyed and burned in the last three weeks, 17 in the area around Ovacik alone. The newspaper Ozgur Ulke recently published a list of the names of the villages destroyed, as well as pictures of soldiers making victory poses in front of burning houses. People fleeing from the villages have reported that military commanders would spread a "white, quickly-burning powder" in the houses, and then a soldier designated as the "ignitor" would set the houses on fire. While thousands of the expelled persons from Tunceli are camping or staying with relatives in other cities, 35 people are still missing. Last Friday, seven bodies of members of the Serim and Icik families were found in their burned out houses in the village of Gokcek. At the same time as villages are being destroyed and their inhabitants forced to flee, residents are also being subjected to aerial bombardments from helicopters seeking to wipe out all the forests in the province. One high-ranking military official, who has since fled from Turkey, told the newspaper Ozgur Ulke that the military code name for the destruction and burning of the villages by the Turkish military forces is "Operation Rome", a reference to the burning of Rome by the emperor Nero. Soldiers also informed the newspaper that the Turkish military is planning to destroy another 150 villages and settlements in the region. The Turkish interior minister Mentese justified the military operation in a press conference with reporters, stating that "the region around Tunceli is a nest full of terrorists". While state sources respond to the accusations by claiming that the PKK are the ones setting fire to the villages, both the "minister for human rights" Azimet Koyluogluas as well as Turkish parliament minister Cindoruk have publically acknowledged that the army is destroying the villages, while not drawing any consequences from this fact. Even a delegation of SHP parliamentarians lead by party chairman and deputy prime minister Karayalcin, which visited the city of Tunceli last week, did not feel it was necessary to pay a visit to the villages destroyed or even to speak with the families expelled. Meanwhile, committees in solidarity with Tunceli have been established in several major cities such as Istanbul, Ankara, and Adana, and on Tuesday they carried out a protest demonstration in the capital Ankara. "The army is preparing the second destruction of Dersim," commented the head of one Tunceli support group, making reference to the tragedy of 1938 when the Turkish army, after two years of effort, deported the entire population of Dersim and then razed the city. The name "Dersim" was then banned and replaced with "Tunceli". "But today, they aren't satisfied with just driving us from our homes and destroying our houses, but rather they also want to destroy nature, they want to destroy all our forests so as to make the region uninhabitable forever." Making note of the comments made by the "minister for human rights", the International Human Rights Association in Bonn has called on the German government to announce an immediate moratorium on the deportation of Kurds and to stop all weapons sales to Turkey. (From: junge Welt, October 14, 1994) 3) Kurdistan Is Burning! Dozens Arrested After Peaceful Demonstrations Kurds in several major German cities took to the streets on Saturday, October 22, to protest the on-going offensive by the Turkish army in the Kurdish province of Dersim. Several hundred Kurds took part in marches in Dortmund, Munich, Hamburg, and Frankfurt. In Hannover and Berlin, several people were slightly injured after riot police attacked demonstrators carrying ERNK flags and shouting slogans in support of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). At least two dozen Kurds were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and displaying symbols of an illegal organization. To The Public: Yesterday Lice, Kulp, Halepce - Today Dersim! Kurdistan Is Burning! In Dersim, hidden from world public opinion, a people, a city, a region are being systematically destroyed by the Turkish government. According to our information, at least 37 villages have been depopulated and destroyed by bombing raids so far. The forests are being set on fire, the farmers' fields are being burned - a scorched earth policy is being followed. Hundreds more villages have already been affected through death threats designed to force people to resettle elsewhere. Dersim has been hidden from the media for weeks, not even the Turkish media, which is loyal to the Turkish state, has been allowed to enter the area. Only military reports are sent from the region, and these are then read, without comment, on state and private television stations. It is no coincidence that all of this is taking place in Dersim, which has been placed under a state of emergency for 10 years, and in a higher state of emergency for the last 2 years. There is a food embargo, a ban on taking sheep herds into the mountains, and food is so strictly and minimally rationed that families barely have enough to survive. Food and livestock are confiscated by the military if they feel there is too much food above the minimal level needed to survive. Villages have been cut off from one another, steets are blocked, and the people's right to free movement has been de facto abolished. The "Reasons" For The Massacre These measures have been enacted against the people of Dersim, because they are a population which are especially progressive and critical of the government. That's why they have been a thorn in the side of the Ankara government for quite some time. This is not the first time that Dersim has experienced such a massacre. For example, in 1938, 40,000 Kurds, elderly people, pregnant women, and children, were killed. This event left a deep memory in the minds of the people of the Dersim region, and that is why the people are so distrustful of the Turkish state. Anyone who knows about what has happened in Lice, Kulp, and Dersim can no longer stay silent in the face of the Turkish government's aggression. We call on the German government to help establish an independent international commission to look into the events in Dersim. We demand that all aid to the Turkish government be suspended, because this aid only serves to keep the Turkish government in place and to allow it to carry out its massaces against the Kurdish people. We demand that all occupying troops withdraw immediately from Kurdish territory! AGIF (Federation of Labor Immigrants from Turkey) Taunusstrasse 12a 51105 Cologne Germany 4) Ozgur Ulke Offices Bombed On Saturday, December 3, 1994, the offices of the pro- Kurdish daily newspaper Ozgur Ulke in the Turkish cities Ankara and Istanbul were bombed. The editorial offices and printing presses were completely destryed in the ensuing fire. Office workers who attempted to put out the blaze were arrested by Turkish police, witnesses reported. At least two dozen people were hurt in blast, and one of the drivers for the paper, Ersin Yildiz, was killed. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing, but indications are that it was either the work of the Turkish fascist party MHP or the Turkish secret police - or both. Just a few days before the bombing, Ozgur Ulke had published a ceasefire offer from PKK chairman Abdullah Ocalan; Turkish prime minister Ciller flatly rejected the proposal. On Monday, December 5, several thousand people took part in Ersin Yildiz' funeral. According to the European office of Ozgur Ulke, the Turkish police banned all gatherings and buried Yildiz themselves. Police then attacked and seriously injured several people wishing to attend the funeral. Several small Turkish democratic presses have pooled their resources in order to make it possible for Ozgur Ulke to continue publishing, albeit in a smaller form. 5) Statement From Ozgur Ulke Editor To The Media And General Public: We received the following statement from the Chief Editor of the pro-Kurdish daily newspaper Ozgur Ulke, A. Baki Karadeniz: Between 03.00-3.30 a.m. last night, explosions ripped through three of the main offices of our newspaper, Ozgur Ulke (Free Land) in Istanbul and Ankara. Once again the world is witness to another atrocity of the Turkish regime. Ersin Yilmaz, a driver was killed and 18 people seriously injured. There is no need to speculate as to the authors of this crime. They are very clear to all of us and are as follows: 1. Ozgur Ulke, following its predecessor Ozgur Gundem, has consistently fought against murderers masquerading as "generals", "ministers" or "journalists"; 2. By publicising new items, photographs and documents revealing the true nature of the dirty-war Turkish regime in Kurdistan, Turkey's mask was torn off before the eyes of the world; 3. Ozgur Ulke never pulling its punches, has been the voice of the Kurdish people and at every turn, proved to be the paper for both Turkish and Kurdish people; 4. Our newspaper always insisted on the need for a political solution to the war in Kurdistan, a war which has already claimed the lives of thousands, the destruction of hundreds of Kurdish villages, and the torturing, maiming and imprisonment of tens of thousands. Through this work, we have raised the awareness of the people and thus become the target for the blood-thirsty commissioners; 5. Despite confiscation of almost every issue and the repression resulting in the reduction of its circulation to between 12-13,000 in Turkey, Ozgur Ulke continued stubbornly to be the voice of the suffering masses. Therefore Ozgur Ulke had to face the myriad orders ranging from those of the chief of staff to interior Minister, from the police to the Special Forces, from so-called journalists to mayors and last but not least we neither wait on the "findings" of false investigations nor the "statements" of state officials because: 1. Already, Interior Minister Nahit Mentese, a few days prior to the atrocity, described our paper as a "separatist paper" and added "I would have closed it down, if I had the authority"; 2. Already, during the MGK (National Security Council) meeting four days ago, our newspaper was on the agenda when it was decided to silence it; 3. Already, our newspaper was declared a target by columnist Emin Colasan of the Turkish daily, Hurriyet, which is nothing but an arm of the contra-guerilla. These examples are enough to identify by conspirators. This attack which happens to coincides with the proposals for peace and dialogue shows the real intentions of the state. However, the state has failed again. They will not be able to silence us by razing our buildings and offices. Ozgur Ulke will be out tomorrow and for many, many days after tomorrow. 6) "Our Movement Will Continue To Grow" Excerpt From An Interview With Abdullah Ocalan, PKK General Secretary What is the significance of August 15, 1984, in Kurdish history and what role has it played? If we are to evaluate this 10-year period, which we can consider to be the Kurdish people's first and last chance of liberation, we may say it is the best organised step towards nation building and national liberation for thousands of years. The Kurdish people, who throughout their history have been bedevilled by tribal divisions due to colonialist policies, were on the point of losing their national identity when this striking attempt was made to stop this process. The Kurdish people had reached this point in the 20th century, a century in which the development of national consciousness was at it zenith. In general, the emergence of the PKK, and in particular the launching of the armed struggle, stopped the slide to oblivion and opened the door to the unfettered development of national consciousness. It was only then that 'Kurdishness' began to develop in a healthy environment. The people believed they could be liberated. The despair of hundreds of years was swept away. The movement that began on August 15, 1984, endeavoured to avoid the pitfalls and fundamental weaknesses of previous Kurdish rebellions. We examined the reasons for the failure of the uprisings that took place in the years following the founding of the Turkish Republic. We also evaluated the Turkish left-wing movement of the seventies, its failure and the way it tried to prevent the emergence of a genuine Kurdish national liberation movement through social chauvinism. We are also aware of the KDP experience. It is clear that the KDP, which started out as a primitive nationalist movement, has completely failed to learn from the uprising of March 1991 and has acted like a simple horse trader and lapsed into a more reactionary position than all the rebellions led by primitive nationalist forces. The PKK has become the incarnation of the Kurdish people's values. It has become a strong material force and is dominant on an ideological, political, and cultural level. It has also transcended the purely national sphere and begun to influence the whole of the Middle East and the international stage. For the first time, the Kurdish identity is being accepted internationally. It has reached the stage where the world takes note and says "there should be a solution". We are also exerting all our energy to ensure that the process of building national institutions is based on a free identity, and on sound principles. We have drawn the lessons of the collapse of "real-existing socialism". From a military and political standpoint, 15 August has brought the Turkish army, supported by the imperialist world and using the most brutal methods, to a standstill. Turkey's political life is also in a cul-de-sac. 15 August is also the expression of resistance to a host of political and diplomatic policies, all of which have been successfully frustrated. Could we categorise the last 10 years as the Kurds' transition to a modern military activity? Not all armed revolts can be classified as army building. The peshmerga is not a typical Kurdish army and is definitely not an expression of a national process of army building. I believe we have made progress towards forming an army on the national level. We have only been able to overcome the characteristics of the peshmerga tradition and traditional uncoordinated rebellion through an intensive internal ideological, political, and organisational struggle. Within the organisation the tribal clan, family mentality tried to exert itself. This is a form of expression of rebellion, the person is engaged in a conflict with oppression and wants to fight back, but then thinks of his family and changes his mind. This is particularly striking in the south where the peshmergas, never having been able to abandon their family interests, have consequently never been able to instigate a protracted war in the mountains. This has prevented the formation of a national army. Even in our organisation there is only a limited number of people who want to be part of a highly organised guerrilla entity. The social, economic, and cultural level of our people makes them less amenable to this form of struggle. I still see this as the most serious problem confronting us. Those who claim to be intellectuals, even revolutionary intellectuals, only indulge in long-winded rhetoric when it comes to the struggle. They are unable to demonstrate the necessary discipline and will-power that military matters demand. All this has emerged since 1984 and with further analysis we believe we will be able to succeed in developing the struggle further. In this context, the 15 August process is a genuine building of a people's army. If it hadn't been for great discipline, patience, and foresight the 15 August uprising would not have lasted 48 hours let alone I0 years. What have been the economic, political, and military results of 10 years of war for the Turkish state and the people of Kurdistan? There is no need for me to say much. Everyone can see that Turkey is experiencing its worst economic crisis in the history of the Republic and I might add arguably the Ottoman period too. It is the struggle we are waging that has brought the economy to this state. If the Turkish people are still putting up with the economic crisis it is due to the pressure of the dirty war. Those directing the dirty war are imposing their own chauvinistic blackmail saying "If this struggle achieves success it will be the end of us, we'll lose everything." They think that they can pursue the war by making the people dependent upon them. Business circles have begun to oppose this policy, and as a result the government has threatened them. Politically, too, there is a crisis. There is no democracy in Turkey. If you added up all the political parties they wouldn't make one party. Most of the party leaders have been appointed by the General Staff. There is no doubt about that. The press have also been put under the control of a committee from the TRT which is a team from the Special Forces Command. The entire press has been organised according to the needs of the dirty war. Consequently the most important aspect of the 10-year war is the way it has exposed the lack of democracy and politics in Turkey. The generals are furious. Despite the many weaknesses and shortcomings of the guerrillas, the Turkish army has not been able to prevent the development of the guerrilla struggle. This constitutes a defeat for them. The General Staff is indulging in a gigantic bluff, trying to show itself as successful by ensuring the media does not mention the great losses suffered by the Turkish army. We know there are over 10,000 guerrillas in the mountains of Kurdistan. Every day over 50 troops are killed but there is not a word in the press. Unfortunately, there is nowhere the people can go to find out the truth. Thus the General Staff can conceal what is happening. I invite the Turkish Grand National Assembly to send a commission to find out the true situation. Are there or are there not guerrillas in the mountains? There is no need for them to be afraid. We will provide assistance to them. Parliament should assume this responsibility and inform the public of the reality of the situation. If parliamentarians are unable to tell the people that the war being waged in Kurdistan is responsible for their economic hardships, how can they conduct politics? Chief of Staff Dogan Gures claimed he would finish us off by winter, then it was March, now he says "by the end of August" which incidentally coincides with his retirement. On the contrary, despite Gures the guerrillas have bases all over Kurdistan, from Sivas to Artvin, near the Black Sea, and from Erzurum to the Taurus Mountains near Adana. In fact from now on we will conduct real guerrilla activity. Up to this time we have only been making preparations. This year, as Dogan Gores has admitted, there is a stalemate. The guerrilla forces have grown both numerically and qualitatively. The Turkish army has launched countless operations this year with 30,000 or 50,000 men but they have all ended in fiasco. They have withdrawn with unexpectedly heavy casualties. The state is on the point of bankruptcy. They cannot attack us as they used to. We, too, aware of their equipment and numerical strength, do not attack them in open warfare but we are able to maintain our existence for long periods wherever we wish. This is a significant military development which will have political results. They will have to talk to us about a political solution. The General Staff are aware of this situation but are afraid of the Turkish public discovering it. You have mentioned Dogan Gures's high-profile in recent years. Is it possible to talk about a "Gures period"? And what is the role of Demirel and the other civilian politicians during this period? In the last change of military personnel, Demirel attempted to impose his authority, since by virtue of the authority entrusted to him as president he is commander of the armed forces. However he signed the order given him by Gures. Demirel gave a banquet in his residence and some generals did not attend. If people as a protest do not accept the commander's invitation this means there is a military coup. Ciller says: "I won't continue as P.M. without Dogan Gures", meaning she will retain him and give him a ministry. Gures did not want to cause discontent amongst other officers by postponing his retirement as he did last year. Although he is no longer formally the Chief of Staff, there is no doubt that he is still running the show. Everyone is saying that his clique is dominant. So if this isn't a clandestine coup, what is it? Gures began his move to power in 1990. At that time Ozal wanted to implement his own policies in the Gulf Crisis and the Kurdish question. It was at that time that the Gures clique made an intervention to weaken Ozal's position. Of course Ozal's death has not yet been properly explained. Even his own doctors say it was not a normal death. A day before he died, Ozal said: "I'm going to solve the Kurdish question and the northern Iraq problem." A day later he was dead. It's too much of a coincidence. Going back to 1991 when the coalition came to power, it was the army and the MIT (National Intelligence Organisation) that ensured that the True Path Party (DYP) and Social Democratic Populist Party (SHP) came together to form a coalition. As soon as the coalition had settled in the massacres started. In March 1992 there were the Newroz massacres in Cizre and Nusaybin. General Esref Bitlis was blown up while on a plane, the General in Lice was shot, a colonel in Dersirii allegedly committed suicide. None of these incidents have been properly explained. The existence of the Kurdish question was once again denied as Demirel and Inonu, the latter almost as if he wished to exceed his father, rained bombs on the Kurdish people. Demirel has again enrolled Turkes (leader of far-right MHP - trans.) to help eliminate the resistance in Kurdistan and any other revolutionary activity that may exist, as he has done for 30 years. In fact the coalition is not a DYP-SHP one, it is a DYP-SHP and MHP one. The MHP is a secret member of the coalition government because the powers that be do not want people to think the coalition is another "national front government" (like in 1977). Turkes's task has been to organise the so-called "mystery killings" that have been perpetrated in Kurdistan. Could you elaborate on this please? It would appear that Turkes has been the head of the Special Warfare Department since 1958. Just as he was in the 1960 coup, since the end of 1991 he has been the clandestine Prime Minister. Turkes and Ciller have had secret talks, it seems that they have regular meetings. Turkes's old cronies have also been put in charge of the other parties, both the main opposition party, the Motherland Party, and even the SHP and DYP. So who else could be Prime Minister? Since 1991 the real president has been Gures and the Prime Minister Turkes. In the same way as the Austrian, Hitler, brought disaster to Germany, it seems the Cypriot, Turkes, is trying to bring disaster to Turkey. In fact, if you look at the representatives of racist-chauvinist Turkish nationalism you will see that nearly all of them are non-Turkish. There are Balkan immigrants, Arabs, Circassians, Cypriots, and even Kurds. The Turkish Republic continues the Ottoman tradition of taking people from its periphery and relying on them to perpetuate its existence. The Special Warfare Department has used all its resources against us. They used Hikmet Cetin until he had no more use, like a squeezed lemon. Now they have brought in Mumtaz Soysal, who used to consider himself a leftist. He is now an ally of fascism. Since 1991, Turkes has been organising the "killings by unidentified persons". These murders have been carried out by the "Special Army" which has been organised by Turkes. Hundreds of people have been murdered, Kurdish businessmen have been killed in the west of Turkey. I want to emphasise the danger that "Turkes's Turkish nationalism" poses for the Turkish people. It is carrying the Anatolian Turk along the same disastrous road that the Ottoman Empire went under the guidance of the Committee for Union and Progress. Democratic forces should be aware of this danger. In Turkey there is intensive debate about a "democratisation package" that is to be presented in the autumn. There is no democratisation package. This is a facade to conceal the losses suffered by the coup. The DEP trial has exposed the lack of democracy. The government wishes to cover this up. Ciller and Karayalcin are like a pair of conjurers doing "hocus pocus", distracting the people's attention. The people won't put up with this much longer. The crises in their parties demonstrate this. I do not expect these people to change. They are part of the team from the Special Warfare Department. Otherwise how could they have come from nowhere to become leaders of their parties? There are politicians with 30 or 40 years experience in both Ciller's and Karayalcin's parties. The so-called "democratisation package" will in fact be the exact opposite and will help to intensify the contradictions within the system. The guerrilla struggle will also deepen these contradictions and intensify the crisis. What is the state of Kurdish diplomacy? One of the most important products of the 15 August has been the effect on the international scene of the struggle which has developed in Kurdistan. Turkish diplomacy has, in recent years, expended great efforts in trying to prove that the PKK is "terrorist" and in so doing isolate the movement by casting a shadow on its legitimacy and limiting its external support. In the last two years, Turkey has used a Kurdish, in origin at least, Foreign Minister in an attempt to prevent the development of Kurdish diplomacy and, consequently, the international effects of our struggle. Unfortunately the negative effects of some Kurdish collaborationist circles can also be observed. Their approach can be compared to merchants competing in a bazaar who see Kurdistan as an alienable and negotiable commodity to be bought by the highest bidder. We have exposed this for what it is as cheap trading. It is not diplomacy. We have proved the effectiveness of principled, revolutionary diplomacy. We are still at the beginning of this process and there are serious shortcomings to be overcome. However, there is intense interest. Every state now has a foreign office Kurdish desk. There is an increasing interest developing around the DEP trial. There are the MPs in exile. There is a need for a Parliament in exile or a National Congress. The fact that there are hundreds of thousands of Kurds abroad and a growing international interest makes the formation of such a body possible. The policies of France and Germany towards the Kurds appear to be different to other countries. How do you evaluate these policies and what is your position? France has a significant unity of interests with Turkey. If France persists with its negative attitude we will take steps to counter it. Also if Germany persists with its current Middle East policies it means its investments will suffer. However, if they wish to abandon their current policies then we can formulate policies based on reconciliation that are in our interests, rather than respond to them in a hostile way. But self-reliance is essential. Exercising our will in an independent way is fundamental for us. Russia has begun to return towards the areas where it formerly had influence. It is seeking to develop relations in the Middle East, particularly with Turkey, and has signed some agreements in the defence field. Can Russia develop an active policy on the Kurdish question? Russia will try to revive its classic diplomacy of the Tsarist period. Russia's Kurdish policy is important for two reasons: Firstly, because of the Turkic Republics in Central Asia and because of Turkey with its pan-Turkism has designs towards them due to their vast oil and gas resources, and secondly, the strategic value of the Bosphorus Straits. There is also the question of Armenia in the Caucasus and of Russia finding an identity of its own in the Middle East. The Kurds are at the point where all these problems meet. Consequently Russia will not remain idle while the USA increases its interest in the Kurdish question. In fact it would not surprise us if Russia formulated a bolder Kurdish policy in the near future. Meetings have been held with PKK representatives to help delineate this policy. Conversely Russia recently sold arms to Turkey and is also involved in Black Sea economic cooperation. Recently there have been talks between Turkey and Iraq and Turkey and Iran. Relations continue with Israel. How do you evaluate these developments? Iran's relations with the Kurds is connected with the dominant Persian element in the Iranian state. There is also a part of Kurdistan in Iran and for this reason, too, Iran is interested in the issue. There is also Turkey's interest in the Azeris and the existence of the Turkic Republics in central Asia. As a neighbour it has the PKK which is based on an entirely different ideology. Iran will develop a Kurdish policy based on winning over the Kurds on a pan-Islamic basis. Iran will also want to develop its relations with the PKK, depending on the state of its relations with Turkey. Syria has a similar approach. For Syria there are the questions of the Sanjak of Alexandretta, water, and the border. It also has its own Kurdish minority. There is also the Israel factor. For these reasons Syria will not be able to easily oppose the Kurds and will continue to desire close relations with the Kurdish movement. Iraq, too, will wish to make peace with the Kurds instead of making permanent war. How do you see the struggle between Turkey and the PKK developing? Our movement will continue to grow. The PKK has support in all parts of Kurdistan and has, to a great extent, influenced other organisations. In 10 years the PKK has grown over a hundred fold. In 1984 we started with 30 guerrillas attacking Eruh. In Amed province there were less than 10 guerrillas. Now there are over a thousand in Amed province. In Europe in the 80s we didn't even have a hundred supporters, now 200,000 people can be mobilised for demonstrations. We will carry the war into Turkey. Economic targets will be hit. Tourism has already been affected. It will be completely halted. If death squad killings do not stop we will retaliate in kind. If the Turkish regime does not put an end to the dirty war and start democratisation then the present situation will continue and this will have a negative effect on the economy as well as on the people. Is it possible that a ceaseflre will be called in the near future? The same evaluations that were made at the time of last year's ceasefire are still valid. There are urgent demands that must be met, like a new constitution, the lifting of the state of emergency, and the prosecution of people like Turkes who are guilty of murder. People who have been forced to leave their villages must be paid compensation and their homes repaired so that they can return. Prisoners of conscience must be released and the DEP trial stopped. Will the regime opt for this? I doubt it. It is still determined to continue the dirty war. It is up to them. What can the Turkish people do to help bring an end to the dirty war? The existing situation is the outcome of the dirty war and revolutionary struggle. They are two completely different things. The development of the revolutionary struggle is a source of pride for us. The dirty war is a source of shame, a dark stain for the army and the people. I call on the Turkish democrats and progressives to do their democratic duty. You must see the revolutionary possibilities created by our struggle. We are prepared to assist you and fight with you side by side. To the people of Kurdistan, I want to use for the first time the phrase "citizens of Kurdistan". You must conform to the new laws of society. New forms and rules are coming into being. We have to abandon our old obstinacy and establish a system where the rule of law is respected and where we can live a patriotic, dignified life. To establish a national order is a great advance for us. (From: Ozgur Ulke, August 17-23, 1994) 7) For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! 16 Years Of The PKK The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was founded 16 years ago at a time when it seemed as though the Kurdish people would disappear from history. The PKK based itself on the conviction that the Kurdish people have a right to a free life, which is the natural right of all peoples. It began its legitimate struggle under impossible circumstances. The Turkish state responded with brutal violence. Whereas the PKK had legitimate reasons to begin this struggle, the attacks by the Turkish state were illegitimate and were concerned with denying the existence of the Kurdish people. The Turkish state really believed it had eliminated the Kurds and buried them under cement. According to the Turkish Republic, there are no Kurds and there never will be. The struggle between the PKK and the Turkish Republic has developed accordingly until today. The reason why the PKK took up armed struggle in addition to other forms of struggle in order to liberate the Kurdish people was the politics of lies and destruction practiced by the Turkish Republic. The PKK had to defend against attacks using a variety of weapons to prevent the legitimate struggle of the Kurdish people from being destroyed and drowned in a bloodbath. The PKK had no choice but to answer violence with violence. The PKK is not fanatically obsessed with armed struggle. On the contrary, the PKK has made efforts at the international level to reach a political solution and has made offers for a ceasefire which are still valid today. Because of the fact that the struggle of the PKK is a humane struggle and one for the freedom of a people, it has developed political strength in a very short time. In this short time, the PKK has won the trust of the Kurdish people. The PKK has given the Kurdish people political consciousness and has made them confident in their free thoughts by means of its political work. The Kurdish people recognize their future and their liberation in the struggle being led by the PKK. The Kurdish people have taken a clear position in the face of the oppression and barbarism, the terror and the massacres of the Turkish state, and, organized by the avantgarde, the PKK, they are in a position to recognize their real enemy. The Turkish state is losing credibility day by day, because it is carrying out an unjust struggle with uncivilized methods. But still it has not been able to separate the PKK from the Kurdish people, nor has it been able to stop the masses from going over to the PKK. Although the PKK historically took up its struggle under impossible conditions, within a short period of time it was able to free the Kurdish people from slavery and to turn a people into freedom fighters. By means of this struggle, the world has been shown that the Turkish state is a uniquely barbaric and terroristic state. The tight connection between the Kurdish people and the struggle of the PKK is proof of the victory of the liberation struggle of the Kurdish people. Today, the Turkish Republic has no political support in Kurdistan. It is trying to keep itself on its feet by stationing half of its army in Kurdistan to carry out a special war. As a result of the alienation of the Kurdish people from the Turkish Republic, the Turkish army has become a foreign occupying force. The people in Kurdistan no longer recognize the authority of the Turkish Republic. The oppression, massacres, and all the methods of destruction practiced by the Turkish state only make the Kurdish people more militant. This is a hopeless situation for the Turkish Republic, for one thing because the people and the PKK have grown together. The PKK has become the Kurdish people itself. As a result, the PKK, as praxis has shown, is the people, and the people are the PKK. Therefore, it is now impossible to separate the Kurdish people and the PKK from one another. That is the reason why the Turkish Republic is carrying out a war of total destruction. Because the Turkish state has not had any success against the PKK and has had to endure continual blows from the PKK guerrilla, it has turned its entire military might against the people. The Turkish state tortures and arrests people at will and puts them in internment camps. It destroys houses, burns villages, and puts people in flight. Last but not least, it bombards the mountains and burns the forests with the goal of reducing the guerrilla's ability to move around freely. All of these are clear signs of the defeat of the Turkish Republic and of the victory of the PKK. Kurdistan is not only a defeat for the Turkish Republic, but also for Western imperialism. Germany's repressive intervention against the Kurdish people is at a point where the Turkish Republic can no longer find a solution. So the banning of the PKK and the ERNK are not without reason. Germany is trying to defeat the Kurdish liberation struggle in order to protect its own economic and political interests. Therefore, Germany has made itself guilty. Its justifications for its position with regard to the Kurdish people and for the banning of the PKK and the ERNK cannot be maintained. The only terrorist who should be accused is the Turkish Republic. Neither the PKK nor the Kurdish people are terrorist. The PKK and the Kurdish people have no quarrel with Germany and they do not ask anything of Germany. Our people have simply made use of their right to organize solidarity events and demonstrations. Such activities have been carried out in several other Western states without any problems. If confrontations break out in Germany, then Germany itself is responsible on account of its pro-Turkish politics. If Germany doesn't want to have any problems, then it should leave the Kurdish people in peace and stop supporting Turkey's special war. Certainly Germany is not interested in bearing the brunt of the anger of the Kurdish people, because anyone who opposes the Kurdish people will surely be defeated. Just as the Turkish Republic will lose this struggle, the same thing applies for Germany. Germany also uses methods of repression against the Kurdish people, as does the Turkish Republic. The Kurdish people support their liberation movement, the PKK, in Europe, and just as they do back home in Kurdistan, they shout the slogan: "The PKK is the people, we are the people!" Repression and bans will only make the Kurds living in Europe even more militant and it will strenghten the organizations and the individuals. Germany should bear this in mind and back off from its present political course. We call on the German people to recognize this reality and to protest Germany's aid for genocide. We call on the German people to support the Kurdish peoples' struggle for humanity and freedom. Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) European Representatives November 23, 1994 8) Interview With ARGK Regional Commander "The Turkish Republic Has Lost Its State Authority" On Saturday, October 8, 1994, the KURD-A news agency held an interview with Ebebukir Atac, regional commander of the Kurdistan national liberation army ARGK. The Kurdistan national liberation army ARGK, the military wing of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), has divided north-west Kurdistan (eastern Turkey) into three military regions. Ebubekir Atac, who commands an estimated 13,000-15,000 guerrillas, commands the "middle" region. This region contains the Kurdish districts Garzan, Amed, Diyarbakir, Mardin, Bitlis, Bingol, and Mus. During the interview, he confirmed reports from foreign observers that the PKK now has vast portions of the region under its control. The PKK now controls approximately 70-80% of north-west Kurdistan. "I can say that the Turkish government has no state authority in Kurdistan anymore." This authority, he said, was now in the hands of the PKK. In reference to the many expensive operations undertaken by the Turkish army over the last two months, Ebubekir Atac noted that "the Turkish government has tried everything militarily possible, but it has achieved nothing". The military leadership in Ankara has been exploiting its soldiers to the fullest. "The soldiers are being used as cannon fodder in the most perverse fashion." The ARGK commander described the military situation by noting that the guerrilla struggle is now - as planned - becoming increasingly focussed on urban centers. The Turkish army has had to abandon more and more military stations and concentrate their forces in barracks close to the cities. That's why one goal for the coming time period will be, on the one hand, "to strengthen attacks on the military stations until no more exist", and also to remove the so-called system of "village guards" which the Turkish government established in Kurdistan, according to Ebubekir Atac. The ARGK commander stated that the Kurdistan national liberation front would launch a major offensive in 1995, with the goal being a general popular uprising in Kurdistan. (KURD-A Press Agency - November 5, 1994) 9) PKK European Spokesperson Arrested On October 26, 1994, British police arrested Kani Yilmaz, the European spokesperson for the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Yilmaz was arrested at Westminster subway station, as he was travelling to address a Labour Party event entitled "The Future Of The Kurdish People". Yilmaz was in London on the invitation of a member of the British parliament. It is certain that Kani Yilmaz was arrested on the order of officials at the Turkish embassy. After his arrest, Kani Yilmaz was placed in top-security detention. Officials in Germany are trying to have him deported back to Germany, where he has refugee status. Turkish officials have stated that they would then like Germany to deport Yilmaz back to Turkey. Kurdish groups and their supporters have organized several protests in London and in several German cities as well to demand the immediate release of Kani Yilmaz. British parliamentarians as well have expressed their extreme disgust at the fact that police have arrested and detained a man invited by some members of the British parliament to give a talk on the prospects for a political solution to the war in Kurdistan. On December 30, 1994, a judge was supposed to rule on whether or not Kani Yilmaz would be deported to Germany. This hearing was postponed. For more information on the case, contact: Kurdistan Information Centre 10 Glasshouse Yard London EC1A 4JN tel. 0171 250 1315 fax. 0171 250 1317 e-mail: kic.london@kurd.aps.nl 10) Kurdish Youth Murdered By German Police Close to midnight on Thursday, June 30, a 16-year-old Kurdish asylum-seeker was shot in the back and killed by a plainclothes police officer in the German city of Hannover. The youth, Halim Dener (Ayhan Eser), was out with five friends hanging ERNK (National Liberation Front of Kurdistan) posters. When a police car passed by, the youths split up. Once the car was out of sight, Halim and a friend continued postering. Then, two plainclothes officers surprised the boys and attempted to arrest them, but both were able to flee. Seconds later, a shot rang out, and Halim was dead with a bullet in his back. The police are calling this murder "an accident", but witness accounts state that the officer opened fire at close range and shot Halim in the back. Halim and his family had only arrived in Germany six weeks before, at the end of May, after fleeing from the Kurdish village of Parcuk in the province of Bingol. The village of Parcuk, like so many others in Kurdistan, had been de-populated and then destroyed by the Turkish army. On the Saturday following Halim's murder, spontaneous demonstrations were held in several German cities. In Hannover, more than 1,000 people held a march to protest Halim's murder. Marchers carried photos of Halim, as well as flags and posters of the ERNK, an organization which was outlawed in Germany along with the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) and more than 30 other Kurdish organizations in November 1993. The marchers also demanded the resignation of German interior minister Kanther who was responsible for the banning of the PKK/ERNK. Later Saturday night, police vehicles and police stations in Hannover, Osnabruck, Oldenburg, and Braunschweig were attacked with stones and molotov cocktails. In Berlin, a Turkish travel agency was firebombed, and more than two dozen stores in different parts of the city had their windows smashed. Other actions and demonstrations were held in Hamburg and several other cities as well. On Monday, July 4, approximately 1,000 people held a demonstration in Berlin to protest Halim's murder. Police threatened to attack the demonstration at several points, because marchers were carrying ERNK posters (the same poster Halim was hanging when he was murdered), but demonstrators continued to wave the ERNK posters and chant slogans in support of the outlawed PKK and were able to complete the demo route unhindered. After the demonstration had ended, however, riot police charged groups of people as they attempted to board subways trains. Several people were injured. In Kiel, Kurds drove a convoy of approximately 20 cars through the city streets waving PKK flags and denouncing the police murder of Halim Deren. Police arrested 11 Kurds during this action. Also on July 4, approximately 50 ERNK supporters occupied the German embassy in Athens, Greece, to protest Halim's murder. After about two hours, the demonstrators left the embassy. There were no arrests. Two days later, Kurds occupied a German consulate in the Danish city of Apenrade. On Saturday, July 9, more than 16,000 attended a funeral march for Halim Dener in Hannover. Thousands of people carried PKK/ERNK flags and banners during the four-hour procession through the city's centre. Halim's coffin was carried to the site where a German policeman murdered him nine days before. Despite witness accounts which prove that Halim was the victim of a politically-motivated murder, police officials are still calling the youth's death an "accident". On Friday, July 22, the body of Halim Dener was stolen by Turkish security forces from the airport of the city of Diyarbakir. His family had brought Halim back to Kurdistan to be buried but Turkish soldiers took Halim's coffin to an undisclosed location and buried it in secret. A delegation of Green and socialist German politicians who were accompanying the return of Halim's body to Kurdistan were detained at the airport and not allowed to travel to the burial site, and a TV crew who were sent to film Halim's funeral were detained in a hotel room. Soldiers prevented Halim's parents from seeing Halim's coffin at the airport before it was taken away. 11) Police Attack Kurdish Protests In Mannheim It was supposed to be a send-off for a march by Kurdish women to the European parliament in Strasbourg. But as more than 400 Kurds gathered in the city center of Mannheim on Monday, September 26, 1994, the German police acted as they have become accustomed to acting: The demonstration was declared an illegal gathering of PKK supporters, and riot police were ordered to attack. Several of the women marchers were injured as police used clubs and water cannons to break up the demonstration. At least 315 Kurds were arrested. On Tuesday, September 27, around 70 Kurdish women occupied Mannheim's town hall to protest the police violence from the previous day. Outside the building, riot police attacked 100 Kurdish demonstrators who were supporting the women's sit-in. During the confrontation, a 20 year old Kurdish youth rushed one riot policeman and stole his pistol. The youth was immediately tackled by half a dozen other officers. The gun - which apparently was not on safety - went off and wounded another Kurd in the leg. After the shooting incident, riot police stormed into the town hall building and brutally attacked the women inside. On this day in Mannheim, around 170 Kurds were arrested and several were injured. Apparently in protest of the police violence against Kurds in Mannheim, a series of firebombings were carried out on Monday night, causing extensive damage to several German police stations, as well as to the Deutsche Bank office in Kiehl and the central post office in Offenburg. 12) Deportation Is Murder! Solidarity With The Kurds! Today, we are blocking this section of the Autobahn to show our solidarity with the Kurds who are resiting the genocidal policies of the Turkish government. Germany, in its role as Turkey's most important arms supplier, NATO ally, and source of currency, is an accomplice to the policies of destruction, expulsion, and oppression being carried out by the Turkish government against the Kurds in Kurdistan. We strongly protest the German government's criminalization of every form of political or cultural expression by the Kurds and their organizations in Germany. The height of this criminalization of one of the largest minority populations living in Germany came with the banning of 35 Kurdish organizations in November 1993. For the past few weeks, we have seen a hardening of the government's stance against the Kurds. The Kurdish New Year's Festival (Newroz), a long-standing traditional expression of the Kurds' cultural identity and political resistance to their oppression, was banned in many parts of Germany and Kurdish gatherings were brutally dispersed by police. The same happened during the Autobahn blockades staged by the Kurds, which were an attempt to make the German public aware of the increasingly desperate situation in Kurdistan and to pressure the German government to change its course and stop supporting Turkey. After police provocation led to confrontations, the traffic stoppages by the Kurds were denounced by the media and seemingly all political parties as "terrorist acts". This clearly shows the double-standard of the established parties: Whereas Autobahn blockades by steel workers, truck drivers, and farmers are seen as understandable expressions of those peoples' uncertain position and the appropriate government ministers hurry to the scene of the protest, Kurds are immediately labelled as "terrorists" as a result of their blockades. This criminalization and smear-campaign has now reached a stage where the provincial governments and the federal government are calling for those Kurds involved in the protests to be deported to Turkey. The Turkish government claims that those persons deported will not be tortured or killed. In Bayern, the first deportations have already been approved, even though part of the ruling coalition there sees these deportations as illegal. For those concerned, deportation will surely mean torture and prison and, in many cases, death. The criminalization, smear-campaign, and deportations are just the latest signs of a state that is becoming increasingly authoritarian and nationalistic: - Last year, the right to seek asylum in Germany was practically abolished. This action was taken with the intention of keeping refugees out of Germany and of deporting them. - The "foreigner laws", which were made even more strict in 1991, are the basis for interior minister Kanther's ability to carry out the deportations. Finally, this is but the latest in a series of measures designed to deny immigrants and refugees any outlet for political activity and to force them into silence with the terror of threatened and actual deportations. No deportations of Kurds and other immigrants/refugees! Complete political self-determination for immigrants and refugees living here! No weapons for Turkey's military regime! Freedom for Kurdistan! Berlin Autonomen, 15.04.94 13) Letter From Leyla Zana Desperate Kurdish Cry Of Protest Rises From Prison Cell (This letter by Leyla Zana MP was smuggled out of an Ankara jail. She, along with 7 other Kurdish MP's, was charged with high treason and the promotion of separatism, a charge which carries the death penalty. The eight Kurds, who were elected members of the Turkish parliament from the Democracy Party (DEP), which was banned in Turkey in June, were stripped of the parliamentary immunity in March. The Turkish government claims the eight were actually just a political front for the PKK. The DEP party was formed after a similar pro-Kurdish party, the HEP, was banned by Turkish officials. In the past few months, several DEP politicians have been killed by "unknown assailants" in Turkish-occupied Kurdistan.) Turkey has a tradition under which politicians are periodically arrested and thrown into prison after a military coup. But even against that background, the actions taken against me and my Kurdish parliamentary colleagues are something new. This is the first time that under a so-called civilian government elected representatives are being intimidated with the threat of capital punishment. These actions are purely political. Even before we were arraigned before a court, Tansu Ciller, the Prime Minister, several ministers and all the leaders of the political parties judged and condemned us. During the municipal elections of last March, Mrs Ciller referred to was "the traitors in parliament" and the government's spokesman described us on state television as "terrorists". In such circumstances, a parliament no longer deserves its name and it is no longer possible to believe in Turkish justice. This justice wants me condemned to death for my peaceful and legal activities carried out in my capacity as a member of parliament for the city of Diyarbakir. It reproaches me in a higgledy-piggledy fashion for opinions expressed in the assembly, during meetings of my constituents, in the local and international press, and for going on hunger strike to protest against the destruction of the Kurdish city of Sirnak by the army. I have appealed for peace and for dialogue. My crime has been to use a Kurdish phrase for the friendship of Kurds and Turks and their coexistence during my oath of loyalty in parliament. Even the colour of my clothes are supposed to make me a 'separatist'. Again, speaking of the existence of the Kurdish people, of the land of Kurdistan, demanding a peaceful recognition of the culture and the identity of the Kurds in a democratic system and within existing borders, make me 'a member of the political wing of the Kurdistan Workers Party', even though that party is engaged in a war with the Turkish state and I search for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish problem. Nor am I alone speaking of the Kurds. Turgut Ozal, our late president, spoke publicly of the existence of "12 million Kurds in Turkey" and argued that a federal solution, was possible to this problem. Even our President, Suleyman Demirel, said in November 1991: "From now onwards, Turkey recognises the reality of the Kurds." The Kurdish people are not the product of my imagination. Historians tell us that the Kurds have been inhabiting their present land from the dawn of recorded time, have their own language, a culture and a civilisation of their own. My people conducted 28 uprisings between 1806 and 1937 to achieve their liberation. President Demirel has described the present guerrilla war as the 29th. At the end of the First World War, when the very existence of Turkey was threatened, the Kurds responded generously to the plea of Mustafa Kemal and he promised that they would obtain their full rights in the new state. Seventy-five Kurdish officials sat in the national assembly "as deputies of Kurdistan". In 1922 Kemal, later "Ataturk", announced a law of 19 articles for the "province of Kurdistan and its assembly". He delayed the examination of his proposals, however, until the Treaty of Lausanne, which recognised the new Turkish state in July 1923, was concluded. The Kurdish deputies who had previously helped him were sent to the Tribunal of Independence, a direct ancestor of the court that is trying us now, and the tribunal sent them to the gallows. A new constitution in 1924 forbade the use of the word "Kurd" and banned all the other languages of Turkey except Turkish. Turkey has pretended since that there are no Kurds in Turkey, that the Kurds are ,'mountain Turks". The ancient place names of the Kurds have been changed into Turkish names and it has not been possible to give Kurdish names to infants. Pliable intellectuals have been pacified by official posts while others have been afflicted with prison or exile. This policy was followed even after the legalisation of political parties in 1950. The Kurdish elite was gradually eliminated. In 1971, a Turkish party of the Left, the Party of Labour, was banned just because it recognised "the existence of the Kurdish people". The military coup of September 1980 plunged the country into ferocious repression. In a land where the people had become attached to democracy and freedom, everyone poured on to the streets to oppose the dictatorship. Alas, Turkey has lost that spirit. It is not astonishing to me that the political parties of Turkey today accept a system that negates the very existence of the Kurds. (From: The London Times - September 7, 1994) 14) Kurdish MP's Sentenced On Thursday, December 8, 1994, heavy sentences were handed down against eight Kurdish parliamentarians from the now-banned Democracy Party (DEP). Although the court, under international pressure, dropped the charges of high treason and separatism, which carry the death penalty, all of the Kurdish politicians were convicted of supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Two MP's were given sentences of 3 1/2 years, another was sentenced to 7 1/2 years, and five others, including the first Kurdish woman to ever be elected to the Turkish parliament, Leyla Zana, were sentenced to serve 15 years in prison. International trial observers, including members of the European Parliament, condemned both the trial and the verdict. 15) Kurds Resist Criminalization In Germany Despite Germany's banning of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and more than 30 other Kurdish organizations in November 1993, Kurds continued to take to the streets to protest Turkey's dirty war in Kurdistan and Germany's open support for that war, both in the form of arms sales to the Turkish military and harsh repression against Kurds living in exile in Germany. Kurds demonstrated on several occasions and in several cities all across Europe, particularly in Germany, throughout 1994. When Kurdish Newroz celebrations in March 1994 were banned and violently attacked by German riot police, Kurds set up buring barricades on Germany highways. In June 1994, tens of thousands of Kurds marched in Frankfurt to demand a political solution to the war in Kurdistan. At each of these events, people proudly displayed the flag of the National Liberation Front of Kurdistan (ERNK), an act which is itself illegal in Germany. The following is a very small compilation of actions, mostly from August 1994. On Thursday, August 18, 1994, a demonstration by 100 Kurds in Bonn's inner-city was violently dispersed by dozens of riot police. Several Kurds were injured. The reason for the police attack was the fact that the demonstrators were publically displaying symbols of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is illegal in Germany. As police moved in to break up the demonstration, men, women, and children sat on the ground and chanted slogans. Police beat people on the ground and used pepper spray to break up the gathering. The demonstration had been organized as a send-off for a group of Kurdish youths who are set to make a bike trip to Geneva. On August 27, the UN Human Rights Commission is going to meet in Geneva to discuss peoples' rights to self-determination. After police had violently attacked and dispersed the demonstration, approximately 45 Kurds fled into Bonn's main post office. Riot police then stormed the building and arrested 22 men, women, and children, several of whom were injured by police. In total, more than 100 Kurds were arrested by police in Bonn. Interior minister Kanther (CDU), who was responsible for the November 1993 banning of the PKK and more than 30 other Kurdish organizations, has stated that he wants all those Kurds that were arrested to be immediately deported to Turkey. Kanther stated on Friday, August 19: "People who so blatanly abuse their guest rights must leave Germany immediately." On Saturday, however, all the arrested Kurds were released from police custody. On Saturday, August 20, around 500 Kurds demonstrated in Frankfurt in protest of the police action against the Kurds in Bonn. The demonstrators demanded that the police give back the bikes which they had confiscated from Kurdish youths in Bonn, as these were needed for the youths' protest ride to Geneva. Riot police threatened to use force to break up the demonstration, as several youths were waving PKK flags and wearing T-shirts with photos of Halim Dener, the 16 year old youth who was murdered by a plainclothes cop in Hannover. After tense negotiations, the demonstrators puts away their PKK symbols and police handed over the confiscated bikes. The demonstration then dispersed without anyone being arrested. On Monday, August 22, a spokesman for the Bavarian justice department confirmed reports that as many as 31 Kurdish prisoners had been on hungerstrike for several days. The hungerstrike is designed to protest Germany's repression of Kurdish activists, as well as to draw attention to the ongoing trial against six Kurdish parliamentarians in Turkey who are facing the death penalty for "high treason and separatism". Among those on hungerstrike are the PKK-supporters recently sentenced for the June 1993 take-over of the Turkish consulate in Munich. On Sunday, August 21, approximately 1100 Kurds held an event in Frankfurt. Police did not intervene, but they did confiscate PKK/ERNK literature. Demonstrators called on Germany to stop supplying Turkey with tanks and other forms of military aid. In Paris, France, at least 190 Kurds were arrested on Monday night, August 22, after police attacked a Kurdish vigil. The Kurds had unfurled banners condemning Turkey's dirty war in Kurdistan and also brought mattresses to a city square in order to stage an all-night vigil for Kurdistan. Riot police then attacked and broke up the gathering. On Wednesday, August 24, German police once again used violence to break up a Kurdish demonstration, this time in the city of Freiburg. When demonstrators held up PKK flags, riot police attacked and made three arrests. Ten police officers were injured in the confrontation. On Wednesday night, a carload of five Kurds was stopped by police at a roadcheck in Frankfurt.Police confiscated six molotov cocktails and arrested the five Kurds. Four have since been released from police custody, but one is being charged with planning an armed attack. Police say the men were all PKK activists. 16) Joint Statement From Kurdish Groups In Germany The thing that needs to be banned is the genocide being carried out by Turkey with the help of German weapons. The cooperation between the Turkish and German governments, who have tried for years to criminalize the Kurds and to place them in a bad light, has finally led to the banning of legal Kurdish organizations. This decision, taken under direction from Turkey, is a political decision. It has no legal basis. If there are concrete accusations, then these should be made openly. The normal legal procedure should be followed. Our organizations are strong enough to stand up to these accusations. Up until now, no trials have ever been opened against our organizations. This incredibly undemocratic decision was made during Ciller's most recent visit to Germany. It resembles the laws which Turkey imposed during its period of martial law. We shall defend our right to organize internationally, both in Germany and elsewhere. Our organizations enjoy the support of tens of thousands of Kurds. They have their own goals and are not bound to any one party. All Kurds are fighting against their ethnic extinction at the hands of Turkey. Germany has made a big mistake if they think that banning our organizations will lessen the support and sympathy of the hundreds of thousands of Kurds in Germany. Problems can best be solved through dialogue. This problem especially cannot be solved by banning Kurdish organizations. If that were the solution, then the Turkish state would have solved this problem long ago. The banning of our organizations is the result of growing cooperation between Turkey and Germany. Turkish authorities welcomed the ban and Turkish TV stations even interrupted their broadcasts to report the news. Germany needs to tell the Kurds whether or not it wishes to be complicit in the genocide in Kurdistan. How many millions of dollars has Turkey paid to Germany for weapons deliveries since 1980? Who is responsible for the 870 Kurdish villages that have been burned to the ground? Who delivered the German tanks, which have even been seen on German TV stations, which are put into action in Kurdistan? Throughout its history, Germany, by means of delivering weapons to Turkey, was complicit in Turkey's mass-murder of the Armenians, are they now going to support genocide against the Kurds? We, Kurds and Kurdish associations, stand for peace and a peaceful solution. But the tanks and other forms of military aid which are delivered from Europe, and especially from Germany, are killing our people. But Germany wants the Kurds, who are face to face with genocide, to remain silent. We, the organizations that have jointly signed this statement, as well as the approximately 200.000 Kurds who support us, wish to protest this undemocratic decision. This situation must change and place must be made for genuine democracy. November 26, 1993 Kurdistan Committee Feyka Kurdistan Kurdistan Centre, Bonn Cultural Centre, Berlin Workers' Union, Bremen Organization for Culture and Support for the Kurdish People, Frankfurt Kurdistan Cultural Association, Nurnberg Culture and Workers' Association, Coblenz Medya Cultural Association, Hagen Kurdistan Cultural Association, Mannheim Kurdistan Centre, Bielefeld Cultural Association of the Kurdish People, Duisburg Kurdish Cultural Centre, Celle Kurdistan Solidarity Centre, Stuttgart Kurdish Cultural Association, Hamburg Association of Kurdish Workers, Hannover Kurdish Workers' Union, Cologne Kurdistan Cultural and Workers' Union, Saarbrucken Kurdish Cultural Association, Rendsberg Kurdish Womens' Centre, Leverkusen Kurdistan Cultural Centre, Kassel Kurdistan Association, Munich Kurdistan Cultural Centre, Ingostadt Kurdistan Culture and Information Centre, Freiburg Kurdistan Cultural Solidarity Centre, Dortmund 17) GSG-9 Storms Kurdish Cultural Gathering On Saturday, May 28, 1994, 80 masked and heavily-armed members of the elite German "anti-terror" police unit GSG-9 stormed the Alte Feuerwache cultural center in Saarbruecken during a meeting of a Kurdish cultural association. 62 persons were handcuffed and arrested; several Kurds were kicked as they on the floor. According to police, the meeting was a leadership gathering of the PKK, which was banned in Germany in November 1993. In particular, the police say they were looking for one specific PKK leader believed to be at the gathering, but he turned out not to be present. All but one of those arrested (a Kurdish woman who German authorities plan to deport to Belgium) have since been released. 18) Kurds Sentenced For Consulate Take-Over On Wednesday, July 6, 1994, 13 Kurds, ranging in ages from 21-31, were given jail terms of 2.5-4.5 years for the June 24, 1993 take-over of the Turkish consulate in Munich. During this action, which was part of a European-wide day of actions coordinated by the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party), 21 embassy personnel were held hostage for several hours. The Kurds demanded a meeting with German chancellor Kohl and a television broadcast to protest Turkey's genocidal war in Kurdistan. Although these demands were not met, all the hostages were released unharmed. The sentences given in this trial were well below what the state prosecutor had requested. Surprisingly, in handing down his ruling, the presiding judge stated that the Kurds had acted with a "positive goal" in mind, and that, considering the political situation in their homeland, they had acted from a sense of "personal emergency". (ND) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arm The Spirit E-mail: ats@etext.org P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada -----------------------------------------------------------------------------