RSF statement of solidarity and
The International Bureau of
Republican Sinn Féin extends greetings and solidarity to the Kurdish people in
these hard times. On September 12, 63 Kurdish political prisoners embarked a
hunger strike until death. These 13 women and 50 men are held in seven Turkish
prisons. They were soon followed on hunger strike by more than 600 political
prisoners. In early November elected representatives of the PKK, Kurdistan
Workers Party, the PAJK, Kurdistan Women’s Liberation Party, and the BDP, Peace
and Democracy Party, went on hunger strike. BDP is the main opposition party in
the Kurdish areas. The protest has now spread to 39 prisons.
September 12 was chosen since the
day is the anniversary when the Turkish military seized power in a coup d’état
in 1980. Since 2009 the Turkish state arrested more than 9.000 Kurdish
politicians, parliamentarians, majors, lawyers, journalists, human rights
activists and trade union members.
The International Bureau of
Republican Sinn Féin fully supports the hunger strikers and their demands. The
three main demands are a) an end to isolation imprisonment of the Kurdish leader
Abdullah Öcalan, b) the recognition of the Kurdish language in schools, public
sphere and in courts and c) the respect of the democratic rights of the Kurdish
people.
Abdullah Öcalan is held in solitaire
confinement for the last 13 years. He has not been allowed to see his lawyer
since July 27, 2011.
Dieter Blumenfeld, international
spokesperson of Republican Sinn Féin, said Abdullah Öcalan is a leader such as
Bobby Sands was. He said: “In 1981, the British government said the Irish Hunger
Strikers have no support and the Irish freedom struggle has no justification.
With the election of Bobby Sands as TD for an All-Ireland Dáil, they were proven
wrong. We witness a similar situation nowadays but even the very fact that there
are more than 600 political prisoners on hunger strike show the huge amount of
support for the Kurdish freedom struggle.”
He continued: “As Irish Republicans
we know too well what it means for a revolutionary movement to see their
political prisoners forced to go on hunger strike. Since the beginning of the
20st century, the Republican Movement has seen 22 men from within their own
ranks die on hunger strike. In 1981 the world supported the Irish hunger
strikers and today it is our duty to support the Kurdish hunger strikers and the
Kurdish people. The Irish freedom struggle is as justified as is the Kurdish
fight for national self-determination and socialism. Abdullah Öcalan has
suffered far too long. Bobby Sands was labelled a criminal by the imperialist
forces because he was an Irish Republican. And Abdullah Öcalan is labelled a
terrorist by the same forces because he believes in the freedom of
Kurdistan.”
“We say to the Kurdish hunger
strikers: You supported our demands in 1981 and now we as Irish republicans are
there for you and we support your demands. On behalf of Republican Sinn Féin I
extend revolutionary greetings and solidarity to all hunger strikers. The Irish
Republicans will always be the allies of the Kurdish people in their fight
against imperialism and for national and social liberation”, Blumenfeld
said.
Críoch/Ends.
--
Republican Sinn Féin
International Relations Bureau
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