The emergence of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) symbolized the mental awakening of a people—an expression of Kurdish truth and consciousness. The period from 1980 to 2005 marked a transition from a state of enslaved and objectified Kurdishness to a state of being a subject, freedom, and revitalized identity. The challenges that emerged after 2005 were no longer about birth itself; they were questions of authentic identity and the pursuit of a free life.

As the Kurdistan Freedom Movement underwent transformation, its adversaries also evolved. The enemy was no longer what it once had been; it had now accepted the existence of the Kurdish people and Kurdistan, albeit with more flexible and insidious policies. In such a phase, Abdullah Öcalan stated that it was now necessary to redefine Kurdishness and the PKK, and to develop new conceptual and theoretical frameworks for an alternative system. The problems and demands that had emerged required a more lasting structure. The goal was to carry the struggle forward by giving material and moral gains a tangible and meaningful form under the name of the Kurdistan Communities Union (Koma Cîvakên Kurdistan, KCK). The concept of the democratic nation stood as an alternative system to capitalist modernity’s nation-state model—one that would liberate society from its dependence on the state. This would become a solution model practiced and realized in PKK history and serve as an example for the entire Middle East. Mr. Öcalan defined the year 2003 as the beginning of a new phase in which both the PKK and the KCK officially declared themselves within the framework of democratic modernity theory. He also described this period as the 'third great birth.'

Practicing the democratic nation

In his evaluation of the role and meaning of the KCK, Abdullah Öcalan said: 'The KCK was declared by the PKK as the people’s own democratic system of governance, following a process in which historical and social realities were brought to consciousness and the nation-state was understood to be a trap of capitalism. Whether under the roof of a nation-state—provided it adheres to democratic principles—or independently, the only form of political authority the Kurdish people will accept is their own democratic self-governance. KCK represents the share of this model that belongs to the Kurdish people. In essence, it means that society must be democratic. As a system, it proposes that all peoples build their political structures together and voluntarily—without falling into national chauvinism, border disputes, bureaucracy, nationalism, or the nation-state. KCK expresses both a proposal and the practical implementation of the democratic nation as a solution model, not only for the Kurdish question but also for all ethnic and national communities, free from the limitations of nation-statism. KCK finds the path to peace and resolution in abandoning the three main pillars of capitalist modernity—namely the nation-state, maximum profit, and industrialism—and in offering an alternative through the components of democratic modernity: the democratic nation, a profit-free social market economy, and an ecological industry.'

Always on the side of peace and resolution

Mr. Öcalan also emphasized the alternative path that the KCK must base itself on if dialogue fails and stated: “Because the KCK does not aim for nation-statism but rather for the democratic nation, it has always stood for resolution and peace. It remains open to dialogue and negotiation with nation-state powers. However, if these efforts do not succeed, the KCK will continue to build a democratic nation along its own essential path and with its own internal strength. It will know how to govern and how to defend this system.”

Fundamental rights and freedoms in the KCK

The Kurdistan Communities Union (Koma Civakên Kurdistan, KCK) is:

-A democratic, communal-confederal system.

-Based on democracy, women’s liberation, and ecological life.

-A non-state, horizontally and pyramidally structured political and social organization grounded in democratic principles.

-A system in which social, ethnic, and religious communities organize themselves on the basis of communes, assemblies, congresses, academies, and cooperatives.

-Structured around the dimensions of democratic nation-building: political, social, free and equal co-existence, economic, ecological, legal, cultural, self-defense, and diplomatic.

-Built upon grassroots democratic options and full participation at every level. It embraces a model of coexistence based on freedom and equality among differences.

- Rejects the nation-state approach to resolving the Kurdish national question and instead proposes a democratic nation model realized through democratic autonomy. Internally, it is founded on the democratic nation, and externally on the democratic confederation of peoples and nations.

The right to be a democratic nation

Abdullah Öcalan stated that "the PKK is currently facing two massive and immediate challenges,’’ and went on to underline the importance of peace and democratic resolution: “We are speaking of the interrelated issues of peace and war, which are in a tight dialectical relationship. The recognition of the right to be a democratic nation is the most immediate and fundamental formula for a peaceful resolution of the Kurdish question. However the powers that insist on maintaining the status of genocide over Kurdistan and the Kurdish people are not even willing to consider a peaceful and democratic solution formula within the framework of a unified nation-state."

Mr. Öcalan emphasized that the PKK, which has undergone a historical transformation, now proposes a new solution model for national questions—entirely stripped of and detached from any form of nation-statism and instead grounded in the concept of the Democratic Nation.

Defining the democratic nation

The democratic nation:

- Does not approach identities through fixed or rigid definitions; instead, with its flexible structure, it embraces the equal participation of all segments of society—ethnic, religious, class-based, gender-based, group, and individual identities alike.

- Views the ethnic and religious communities it lives alongside as a source of richness and diversity.

- Considers the level of women’s freedom, organization, and participation within society as the very measure of that society’s freedom and democratic development.

- Believes that true democratic nation-building can only be realized when the influence and presence of women are deeply embedded.

- Prioritizes the free expression of all differences within society.

- Rejects the dependency of the individual and society on the state.

- Seeks to resolve social problems not through state structures, but through society’s own grassroots forms of organization.

- Does not rely solely on legal codes but is grounded in the principles of societal ethics and conscience.

- Bases its formation of willpower on the direct practice of democracy through communes, assemblies, cooperatives, and academies.

To be continued…