Berivan and Battal
Berivan and Battal
"Being born a Kurd has been a huge weight on mine and my family's shoulders!" begins Berivan, aged 29, as we sit down for our interview in a warm cafe 50 metres from St Martin in the Fields, on the corner of Trafalgar Square in London, where a group of Kurds are participating in a three day hunger strike in solidarity with the historic mass hunger strike unfolding in Turkey.
The hunger strike in Turkey is entering it's 45th day, while Berivan has just finished her first day she is already looking tired and cold but utterly determined.
Her brother, Battal is finishing his 10th day as part of the mass indefinite hunger strike in a prison cell in Izmir, which is partly why Berivan has joined the solidarity hunger strike in London.
"From the moment I was born the problems began" continues Berivan grasping her plastic bottle of sugared water.
I suddenly feel guilty that I've brought her to a cafe to do the interview but at least there is momentary warmth out of the bitterly cold, northerly winds lashing the cold concrete steps of the church.
"My family name is Berivan but I had to make a pretence of being called Ufuk when I went to school or with any officials of the Turkish state."
"I'm on hunger strike because of the countless injustices and discrimination that Kurds face in every single sphere of life in Turkey. When I left school I went to university but how can one concentrate when your people are suffering such injustices, it's impossible!"
"My brother Battal was at university in Izmir and during the civil disobedience campaigns just before the Turkish elections in 2011, he wanted to ask the local BDP official if it would be possible to set up a 'Democracy Tent' at his university as a way of showing solidarity."
"The police had tapped the phone and were listening to the conversation. They raided his home that evening and took him into custody and charged him with being a member of a 'terrorist' organisation and said that they had evidence he was organising tents to be sent to Qandil for the guerrilla fighters of the PKK!"
"Can you imagine? He is now in prison because of that telephone call asking if the BDP could set up a tent at his university!"
"These are the ordinary people who are filling Turkey's jails in the so called 'KCK' trials" "They label anyone who is doing ordinary activities for Kurdish rights as 'terrorists'!"
"He demanded to speak in Kurdish at his so called 'trial' and so he has still not been sentenced or tried!"
When I ask Berivan about her younger brother's prison conditions, she begins for the first time in the interview to crack her fingers and her mouth quivers.
I suddenly regret asking the question. After a few moments she gathers herself and looks me in eyes.
"My mother doesn't know...." Tears begin to well in her eyes but she composes herself again and continues."
Our translater, who is also on the hunger strike leans forward and quickly explains that Berivan's mother does not know that Battal has joined the indefinite hunger strike and Berivan and her family believe that if they told her it would seriously affect her health and she could possibly die herself.
"We no longer receive letters, the prison authorities have stopped them" again she stops to compose herself.
"You know, my brother loves films, in my letters to him I used to write detailed accounts and reviews of films for him but now.." she chokes. I choke. The translator chokes. After a long pause and composing herself she says, "now I'm calculating just how many more letters I can send him....."
Later after she has composed herself, cracked her fingers again and taken a sip of her sugared water she is defiant!
"I support my brothers action and if need be I will do the same! I would burn myself tomorrow if I thought it would bring change for my people!"
I ask her if there is anything else she would like to add and she pulls herself up and looks me straight in the eye!
"I know one thing. One day the world will answer for their crimes to the Kurds! No power on earth can prevent the progress of the Kurdish Freedom march, those who try will bitterly regret it!"
* Author of the blog http://hevallo.blogspot.com/
The hunger strike in Turkey is entering it's 45th day, while Berivan has just finished her first day she is already looking tired and cold but utterly determined.
Her brother, Battal is finishing his 10th day as part of the mass indefinite hunger strike in a prison cell in Izmir, which is partly why Berivan has joined the solidarity hunger strike in London.
"From the moment I was born the problems began" continues Berivan grasping her plastic bottle of sugared water.
I suddenly feel guilty that I've brought her to a cafe to do the interview but at least there is momentary warmth out of the bitterly cold, northerly winds lashing the cold concrete steps of the church.
"My family name is Berivan but I had to make a pretence of being called Ufuk when I went to school or with any officials of the Turkish state."
"I'm on hunger strike because of the countless injustices and discrimination that Kurds face in every single sphere of life in Turkey. When I left school I went to university but how can one concentrate when your people are suffering such injustices, it's impossible!"
"My brother Battal was at university in Izmir and during the civil disobedience campaigns just before the Turkish elections in 2011, he wanted to ask the local BDP official if it would be possible to set up a 'Democracy Tent' at his university as a way of showing solidarity."
"The police had tapped the phone and were listening to the conversation. They raided his home that evening and took him into custody and charged him with being a member of a 'terrorist' organisation and said that they had evidence he was organising tents to be sent to Qandil for the guerrilla fighters of the PKK!"
"Can you imagine? He is now in prison because of that telephone call asking if the BDP could set up a tent at his university!"
"These are the ordinary people who are filling Turkey's jails in the so called 'KCK' trials" "They label anyone who is doing ordinary activities for Kurdish rights as 'terrorists'!"
"He demanded to speak in Kurdish at his so called 'trial' and so he has still not been sentenced or tried!"
When I ask Berivan about her younger brother's prison conditions, she begins for the first time in the interview to crack her fingers and her mouth quivers.
I suddenly regret asking the question. After a few moments she gathers herself and looks me in eyes.
"My mother doesn't know...." Tears begin to well in her eyes but she composes herself again and continues."
Our translater, who is also on the hunger strike leans forward and quickly explains that Berivan's mother does not know that Battal has joined the indefinite hunger strike and Berivan and her family believe that if they told her it would seriously affect her health and she could possibly die herself.
"We no longer receive letters, the prison authorities have stopped them" again she stops to compose herself.
"You know, my brother loves films, in my letters to him I used to write detailed accounts and reviews of films for him but now.." she chokes. I choke. The translator chokes. After a long pause and composing herself she says, "now I'm calculating just how many more letters I can send him....."
Later after she has composed herself, cracked her fingers again and taken a sip of her sugared water she is defiant!
"I support my brothers action and if need be I will do the same! I would burn myself tomorrow if I thought it would bring change for my people!"
I ask her if there is anything else she would like to add and she pulls herself up and looks me straight in the eye!
"I know one thing. One day the world will answer for their crimes to the Kurds! No power on earth can prevent the progress of the Kurdish Freedom march, those who try will bitterly regret it!"
* Author of the blog http://hevallo.blogspot.com/
