In the second part of a conversation, Cemil Bayik, co-chair of the KCK and (Kurdistan Communities Union) Executive Council, spoke about the importance of the Kurdish people's leader, Abdullah Öcalan, for the struggle for free coexistence, freedom and democracy not only for the Kurdish people and the Middle East, but also on a global level. Focusing on the current development of the Third World War.
The first part of the conversation can be read here
Political vacuum after the collapse of the Soviet Union
After the collapse of the Soviet system, there was a political vacuum. The system of capitalist modernity wanted to fill it in order to declare its hegemony over the whole world. In order to be able to do so, an ideological, psychological, military, and cultural war was launched. And day by day, this war continued to expand. Although Rêber Apo [Abdullah Öcalan] laid the foundation of the struggle in Ankara and developed it in northern Kurdistan, the struggle grew in the other parts of Kurdistan as well.
The struggle even began to break through the framework of Kurdistan and began to affect the entire Middle East. Until then, the Middle East was the basis for the system of capitalist modernity. So, Rêber Apo’s influence on the Middle East was to be prevented because the capitalist modernity system wanted to establish its hegemony all over the world. And the way to do this was through the Middle East. Therefore, they had to prevent anything in the Middle East that could pose a threat to their system. Accordingly, they saw Rêber Apo as a danger and made plans on how to prevent him. If they did not conquer the Middle East, they could not declare their hegemony to the world. Therefore, they found the solution to prevent Rêber Apo in the international conspiracy.
Turkey wanted to liquidate Öcalan and the PKK
Once they neutralized Rêber Apo, they could easily fulfill their goals in the Middle East. That is why they initiated the international conspiracy. The Turkish state also wanted to take advantage of this, aiming to liquidate the PKK and complete the Kurdish genocide. But both capitalist modernity and the Turkish state failed to achieve the desired result. They wanted to form other alliances to achieve results. Here, too, it made some alliances with the Barzani family clan and the Iraqi state. The Turkish state knew that if it could not bring together the occupiers and powers in the Middle East, if it could not bring these powers and the capitalist powers together, it would not be able to fulfill its goal of liquidating the PKK and completing the Kurdish genocide.
The Turkish state is currently working on this basis and is doing dangerous work. Our people and international friends need to evaluate these developments well. If one does not understand this situation well, an appropriate struggle cannot be waged, set goals will not be achieved, and one cannot become a hope of humanity. Rêber Apo was trying to figure out why the conspiracy was being carried out, what its purpose was, and how one could stand against it. Crucial to him was the question about what should be done to frustrate the conspiracy. And he found many answers to those questions.
Everyone expected that through the abduction of Rêber Apo, the PKK and the free Kurds would disappear. But because Rêber Apo analyzed the conspirators and their collaborators very well and was aware of their goals, he was able to become a solving force himself and focused on frustrating their aspirations. No one expected that Rêber Apo would be able to oppose the conspiracy so strongly. Rêber Apo developed a new paradigm for the Kurdish people, for the peoples of the Middle East, for humanity, for the democratic and freedom-seeking forces, and particularly for women and young people. He raised the hope of the peoples, of those who struggled for socialism, freedom, and democracy. In this way, he personally managed to frustrate the international conspiracy.
Öcalan developed a new paradigm
Rêber Apo wanted not only the PKK to resist but also the Kurdish people, the peoples of the Middle East, the women, and all oppressed peoples to also join this resistance against the conspiracy. He developed the new paradigm on this basis. Day by day, the paradigm is spreading all over the world and Rêber Apo, and the struggle of the Kurdish people and Kurdish women is understood much better.
As it is known, the Soviet system came up during the First World War, and during the Second World War it developed, spread, and strengthened. The current situation of the forces of capitalist modernity is not like it was during the First or Second World Wars. It is facing great chaos and crisis; it wants to get out of this situation, but no matter what it does, it cannot. That is why it is deepening the war day by day. This war may take place in some other parts of the world as well, but the center of this war is growing in the Middle East, and it will eventually spread more and more. The center of the war is the Middle East, and Kurdistan is the center of the Middle East.
Those who lead the system of capitalist modernity have taken the Middle East as a basis to bring the system out of chaos and crisis. That is why they are expanding the war day by day. Some may say that the war is being waged only by Israel; this is what is visible. But there are things that are hidden, and this is being revealed day by day. The system puts Israel at the forefront; they want to both defend Israel and strengthen Israeli power militarily, diplomatically, and economically in the Middle East.
Plan to redesign the Middle East
They want to redesign the Middle East again, as the system of capitalist modernity developed through the design of the Middle East in the First and Second World Wars. The system is now in chaos; the institutions it developed during the First and Second World Wars have been defeated; the institutions need to be rebuilt, so they are developing a hot war in the Middle East. They conduct this war through Israel. It is stated that there is a war between Iran and Israel; this may be partly true, but the war is not only between Israel and Iran. The war is mainly between capitalist modernity and democratic modernity. The war is being waged on this basis. The Turkish state is acting as if it is uncomfortable with this war, as if it is against Israel. However, the Turkish state is not against Israel; they are expressing their contradictions.
What they are saying is that they are part of NATO and that NATO, and capitalist modernity in general, should develop there based on them. What they say is that they are ready for this. Capitalist modernity has brought the forces in Turkey to power so that they can complete the genocide against the Kurds, smash the PKK, and establish a strong new system in the Middle East. Among other things, they created ISIS for this purpose. But now Turkey is complaining that it is being abandoned. Israel and a handful of Arab states are being pushed to the forefront and are taking the place that Turkey would like to have.
Iran also sees this situation as contrary to its interests because both Iran and the Turkish state have built great states in the Middle East in the past, and they dream on this basis. But the system is currently weakening Iran and the Turkish state through Israel and some Arab states. This is the reason why Iran and Turkey have conflicts with Israel. Otherwise, the Turkish state is not against Israel. Massacres are taking place against the Kurdish people, the Palestinian people, and many other peoples of the Middle East. Nobody is making a sound about this. Why? Because they want to reorganize the Middle East for the system of capitalist modernity. That is why they do not want the peoples of the Middle East to emerge victorious from this war. With this war, they want to weaken the peoples and establish their system. Israel says that they kill so many terrorists every day, and the Turkish state says the exact same thing. It is like a competition between Israel and the Turkish state to kill and massacre.
The politics being carried out is based on this and is exactly the same. The only question is whether Israel or Turkey will develop its hegemony over the Middle East. This is their only question and problem. One must understand this reality well and not be mistaken. We are against this war and massacres. Against this, we struggle for freedom, democracy, and justice. And we will continue our struggle more strongly.
Forces of capitalist modernity against a democratic solution in the Middle East
The system of capitalist modernity and the forces that lead this system do not want a democratic solution to be realized in the Middle East. In contrast, they want to prevent this. Because their interests require it. Rêber Apo and the PKK want to take the Middle East out of this dirty war and open a new page for the peoples. They want to ensure freedom, democracy, and justice in the Middle East. They want to develop the unity of peoples, beliefs, and cultures. The capitalist system sees this as dangerous for its interests. That is why it wants to deepen the war between peoples, beliefs, and cultures. That is why they prevent the solution that Rêber Apo wants to develop in the Middle East. They paved the way for the likes of ISIS in the Middle East. They attacked the PKK with the support they received. Why? Because they wanted to prevent the Democratic Nation as a solution system. This is why ISIS attacked the PKK and the Kurds. They aimed to deepen the problems created by the capitalist modernity system in the past. On this basis, they wanted to put the Middle East at their service. Of course, the Turkish state gave the biggest support to ISIS and still continues to do so.
The Turkish state claims that nothing can happen in the Middle East without it. Everything that is sought there should be done through it. They are trying to enforce this. The PKK and the free Kurds stood against this and prevented the likes of ISIS from wreaking havoc in the Middle East. If today Rêber Apo, the PKK, and the free Kurds are being targeted, this is why, because they did not allow the conflicts in the Middle East to deepen. The Turkish state shows that it wants to deepen the conflicts, but it is hindered through them. That is why the Turkish state acts so hostile. This is why it is hostile to Rêber Apo, the PKK, and the solution of the Democratic Nation. Therefore, the efforts to implement the solution developed by Rêber Apo for the Middle East and humanity must be strengthened. The stronger the struggle on this basis, the sooner the demands of the peoples will be realized. Otherwise, the chaos and crisis of the capitalist modernity system will grow even more. The current war is being fought within this framework.
The solution is in the Democratic Confederal system
Therefore, anyone who says that they are against the system of capitalist modernity, that this system is against society, against humanity, against life, must take Rêber Apo’s struggle for the peoples and humanity as a basis. The solution lies within Rêber Apo’s paradigm; the solution is in the Democratic Confederal system; the solution is on the path of the Democratic Nation. That is why it is the forces of capitalist modernity that are currently fighting in the Middle East, led by Israel-America and Iran and Turkey, who also have their own aims in the Middle East. But the system of capitalist modernity prevents Turkey and Iran. That is why these two states are not comfortable. They see that some developments are taking place, but they do not serve their interests. That is why they are not comfortable. We need to develop a revolution of Democratic Modernity out of these conflicts. This is everyone’s duty in the Middle East.