In this in-depth interview, Duran Kalkan, member of the KCK Executive Council, spoke about the state of affairs one and a half months after people's leader Abdullah Öcalan's ‘Call for Peace and Democratic Society’ was published. He once again stressed the clear position of the Kurdish freedom movement, reiterating that  "Öcalan's call can be implemented if the appropriate conditions are created."

More than a month and a half has passed since the statement by peoples leader Abdullah Öcalan, which was read out on 27 February. Great hopes had been raised, especially regarding the change of the living and working conditions of Öcalan. What is the current status in this regard?

I respectfully salute the historic Imrali resistance and its conductor, Rêber Apo [Abdullah Öcalan]. The isolation in Imrali continues. There is no information about any serious change reflected to us. A period of one and a half months has passed since Rêber Apo made a historic call that was widely appreciated, and, accordingly, it was expected that there would be practical developments and changes. However, this is not the case. The Imrali system of torture, isolation, and genocide continues.

Free living and working conditions for Rêber Apo have not been ensured. However, it was stated that he would regain those within a week. There has been no change. So far, there is no serious approach that has been reflected and observed in this regard. Since the call did not find its response in practice, this led to a serious discussion and crisis. We, as the leadership of the party, expressed our position in this process quite clearly. We pointed out that like this there will be no outcome, and we assume that this is also Rêber Apo’s attitude. The rumors that Rêber Apo did not have the intention to make any statements on Newroz do not correspond to the facts.

As we read the situation, Rêber Apo is taking a clear stance to emphasize the crucial importance of the current situation, and the situation in Imrali is a crisis. It is claimed that this crisis has been overcome with recent statements and talks, but whether this really is the case or not, we don’t have concrete information on that. But what they intended to do was to reflect a positive atmosphere to the public.

The content of Rêber Apo’s call should, of course, be discussed, and everyone can express their own views on the Imrali system, on the physical freedom of Rêber Apo, and on the solution to the Kurdish question. But one should not spread rumors and claim that Rêber Apo said this or acted like that. One must not speak on behalf of Rêber Apo. Everyone needs to be careful in this regard in order not to create wrong perceptions. There are people that want to manipulate and play with minds. That is why it is necessary to be careful and sensitive.

Rêber Apo did more than his part and thereby surprised everyone. There were headlines stating, ‘He did the unexpected’. Rêber Apo made a confident and pioneering statement pointing towards a solution in such a way that it surpassed everyone’s expectations. This was, of course, very meaningful and important. However, one should not expect that Rêber Apo will solve the whole problem alone, that everything is solved with Rêber Apo’s statement. Rêber Apo did not create this problem. There is the Kurdish question behind it. It was created by the international capitalist modernity system and the state structure of the Republic of Turkey. They created it by denying the existence and identity of the Kurds, launching extermination attacks, and practicing genocidal attacks against the Kurds. The Kurdish question was created on the basis of enmity, on the basis of a mentality and politics of destruction and ignorance. This is the essence of the problem. And they based the Kurdish question on violence. Those who rely on violence, those who have conducted massacres and genocide against the Kurds over the past one, two hundred years, have to give up on this. Those who deny the existence and identity of the Kurds, who do not recognize even their most basic rights, and who want to annihilate them have to give up on this. Rêber Apo and the PKK have revealed the reality that they are living and put it in front of everyone.

As Rêber Apo pointed out, he has not created this problem. It is the work of others. He found it in front of him, while everyone else also saw it but ignored it. And Rêber Apo didn’t act like everybody else. He named it and started to work on its solution. He fulfills the duties and responsibilities that fall on his shoulders in this regard, but he alone cannot bring peace to Turkey. War and peace involve two sides. There cannot be a solution only by one side. Rêber Apo has been making a relentless effort for peace for more than 30 years, but nothing can be solved alone. Freedom, democracy, and democratization cannot be achieved by the efforts of one person alone. Everyone needs to participate in this. Everyone has a duty and responsibility in this. Therefore, no one should have the expectation that Rêber Apo can and will do it all by himself.

Kurdish society in particular, and among it the youth and women, needs to be sensitive to this reality. They need to be well aware of which responsibility falls on whose shoulders, what the way for a solution can be, what kind of duties emerge during this process, and what kind of struggle is necessary. The current situation demands that the global freedom campaign aiming at the physical freedom of Rêber Apo be developed and sustained in a multifaceted and effective manner. In this context, a conference was held in Rome. It was important, and the recent developments were evaluated. What will be done next is, as far as we can observe, still being discussed. I salute all those who carried out that effort, but I also want to highlight that it is necessary to further enlarge, spread, and strengthen the global freedom campaign on every dimension, in all four parts of Kurdistan, and in all corners of the world.

In his call, peoples leader Öcalan also points out the necessity of the convening of a congress. This is something that is being widely discussed. What can you, as one of the people directly responsible for this, say about this?

Rêber Apo’s statement from February 27 titled ‘Call for Peace and Democratic Society’ was a historic call, and its content carried a deep meaning. Therefore it was very meaningful, effective, and had a positive impact on everyone. There were some who opposed it, and even those who made harsh accusations for the call being published, but in general it had a positive impact on everyone. It was a call that not everyone could make, a call that not everyone could afford, a step that not everyone could take. But Rêber Apo took this step. It imposed duty and responsibility on everyone. The call was addressed not to one specific person or organization, but to everyone living in this world. No one can say that the call does not concern him. Even the most oppressed in the remotest corner of the world was addressed to the call because of being so. An unprecedented system of oppression and exploitation was created on the basis of the mentality and politics of destruction and ignorance of the Kurds, and it spread from there. Therefore, the Kurdish Freedom Struggle includes all of them. In this respect, one can say that maybe not on the same level, but at the end everyone is the addressee of the call.

We as a movement make our position known at the appropriate time, and so on March 1st we issued a statement to define our position, and to follow this up with practical steps, we declared a ceasefire. Most importantly, we openly defined our position. We said that this call can be implemented if the appropriate conditions are created. And we stated that we fully agree with its content and that we will comply and implement it. For the appropriate conditions, we defined the physical freedom of Rêber Apo, the conditions for him to live and work freely, because only Rêber Apo can organize the necessary congress. Only Rêber Apo can make the decisions to be taken at the congress, and only Rêber Apo can implement them. Apart from this, neither any force, person, nor institution within or outside our movement can do so. Our party leadership and all other current mechanisms within our movement are based on the administration of the war. It can only wage war. They say, “The Congress must dissolve the PKK.” The world united to destroy the PKK; they used all kinds of weapons and resorted to all kinds of ways and methods. They have never followed any rules of morality and law. They have been uninterruptedly attacking for forty years and could not get any results. For the last ten years they have been attacking on the basis of their so-called “collapse action plan” without success. They could not destroy or annihilate the PKK, and they could not continue Kurdish denial. No one but Rêber Apo can make them take those decisions and implement them. Now we stand on this view and explanation. A very long time has passed, and it was a difficult time. We made various evaluations, but still, due to the importance, content, and difficulties of the problem, we continued this process in the sense of not rushing and giving practice a little more chance. Our statements are still valid today. On this issue, we have not yet received anything concrete from Rêber Apo in the direction of holding a congress and having a decision taken.

Rêber Apo has stressed his determination. We have seen this, have attached importance to it, and find this determination meaningful and valuable. We are not against its realization; on the contrary, we are in favor of it. But it is obvious that a situation to realize it has not emerged in Imrali. More than forty-five days have passed, more than a month and a half, since the declaration, and still the isolation continues. There has been no new development, no change in the conditions under which Rêber Apo lives and works. The Imrali system continues; it has not been abolished, and not a single step in that direction has been taken. Rêber Apo cannot meet with anyone; he is not in a position to do any work regarding the congress. Once he gets in a position to realize this, he will advance the process.

Rêber Apo has made a decision and said that he is ready and willing to play his role. If the circles in power and the state really want it to be done, then there is the power to do it. When they pave the way, give him the opportunity; he implements his decision – he fulfills his promise – the problem will be solved. If what they really want is to solve the problem, then this can be done in this way. While there is the continuation of the Imrali system, the maintaining of the isolation, and the hostage system, the requirements defined in Rêber Apo’s declaration cannot be implemented. They cannot be practiced. Now it is being said that there are positive developments, that practical steps are being taken, and the Imrali delegation said that there will be changes in the conditions in Imrali, legal work will be done, the so-called ‘Right to Hope’ will become functional, there will be legal guarantees given, and so on. We don’t know what exactly is behind it and what is being discussed. But if it really happens like this, if Rêber Apo is enabled to run the congress, then it can work; then there will be no problem. There are no obstructive problems on our side; on the contrary, there are always facilitative approaches.

The rest is up to the power and state forces. It is up to those who created this problem, those who created the Imrali system, and those who maintain the most severe hostage system known to humanity. They babbled something about there being no legal legislation; however, there are European laws. Applying European laws is binding for Turkish law. They could have implemented it. They could have made legal arrangements within three days if they wanted to. It was not something that could not be done, but they have not done it until now; they have stalled and delayed. If they block the process, and they are responsible for it, it causes.