KCK chairs Besê Hozat and Cemil Bayık spoke about the importance of the liberation of Women and their freedom for the Kurdish Freedom Movement in the fourth part of the interview given to the online portal Libyajamahiriya.

The first part of the interview dealt with the concept of independence in capitalist modernity and the understanding of democratic autonomy in a confederal system, which was shaped by Abdullah Öcalan. In the second part, the co-chairs of the executive council of the umbrella organization KCK (Association of Kurdish Societies) answered questions about their economic model and socio-economic developments in Rojava. The third part of the conversation dealt with the PKK's successes in Kurdistan.

In the fourth part, the co-chairs speak about how does the Kurdish liberation movement interact with other peoples and religious communities, and what attitude does the movement take towards liberation struggles like that of the Palestinians or the struggles of the native and black people in the US.

The liberation of women and their freedom is an important issue for the Kurdish Freedom Movement. Abdullah Öcalan has rightly pointed out that the liberation of society is impossible without the liberation of women. What achievements and successes has the Kurdish Freedom Movement made in this area? What is its vision regarding women’s freedom? 

Rêber Apo talks about the fact that society cannot be liberated if women are not liberated. But Rêber Apo’s view on women goes far beyond that. As long as the whole society does not develop a social, cultural and political life based on the freedom of women - the line and spirit connected with it - woman cannot be truly free. This is because women have been turned into a gender that is enslaved, oppressed, exploited and marginalized as part of social reality. Therefore, the whole society must be shaped according to the line that aims at the freedom of women. Only then can both society and women be free. Women’s freedom is the mother of all freedoms. Once it shapes the entire life, that is, all forms of freedom, then women and the society will be completely free. To easier to understand the enormous importance of women’s freedom, Rêber Apo has spoken of women’s freedom as preceding the freedom of the nation and class. Because the first form of oppression, enslavement and exploitation came at the cost of women`s freedom. Therefore, only through women’s freedom can we get to the root of slavery and exploitation. Thus, we will succeed in destroying the basis of all forms of slavery and achieve freedom in all spheres of life. 

In Kurdistan, it was women who were at the forefront of the popular uprisings. This is the first time in the Middle East that women have been at the forefront of a social movement at this level. All of this has changed not only women, but also society as a whole, and men. Because as long as men do not change, social freedom in the real sense cannot be achieved. All exploitative and oppressive systems, including Capitalist Modernity, are based on the mentality of the hegemonic man. For this reason, in order to overcome all these exploitative and oppressive systems and their current representative - Capitalist Modernity - it is very, very important that men also transform themselves. Because all of them are social systems based on the mentality of the hegemonic man. So, in the real sense, women play their role as a mother by changing the man, and by changing the whole society accordingly. The fact that women play the main role or the mother role in all developments in Kurdistan expresses this reality of women very clearly. The women who took to the streets in Kurdistan and led the popular uprisings later took to the mountains and thus continuedwomen’s power has developed in the guerrilla. Women’s units, commanders and the women’s army have been established. A women’s party has been founded. Thus, a reality of women has emerged in which they organize themselves completely autonomously, lead themselves and wage war independently. In addition to joint planning, actions and joint command, women have developed into their own guerrilla army. Women commanders are always represented in the general commandant’s office. Without a doubt, there exists a common guerrilla army that fights against the enemy. This is because success is achieved through joint organization, planning and action. However, alongside this exists the women’s own organization and their own lives. They choose their own commanders and independently determine their tasks, area of operation and field of work. Decisions concerning women are made by the women’s leadership and the women’s structures themselves anyway. This kind of women’s organization is very important. 

In addition to women’s equal rights in the field of social and political organizing, they also participate in the organized life and struggle. Often, the majority of the members of a leadership are female friends. Because female comrades organize themselves autonomously, they have gained significant influence in social and political life. 

This is the first time that women, as members of a freedom movement, have founded their own party. In this way, they deepen their ideological discussions about women’s freedom. They also analyses of the political situation within the framework of these ideological discussions. At the same time, through their autonomous organizational structures, the women’s structures constantly increase their knowledge and experience regarding aspects such as leadership, organizing, and solving problems on their own. The women’s self-confidence is increased by the fact that the problems that arise in the women’s movement are solved within the framework of the women’s own organization and leadership. This plays a very important role in helping them develop their own willpower in the male-hegemonic system. The fact that the Kurdish Women’s Movement is based on an autonomous women’s party plays a very important role in giving it a very influential and leading position in the global women’s movement today. Such a women’s party makes women become a force and also increases the importance and influence of women in the general ideological and political struggles. This fact proves that women will not develop into a real force unless they organize themselves autonomously. Guaranteeing women’s equality and freedom only on a legal level does not ensure that women will become completely free, nor does it let them develop a will of their own. When equality and freedom are based on such organization and will, they have real meaning. This not only liberates women, but plays a crucial role in ensuring that the whole society is free and lives a democratic life. In this sense, it will be crucial for the liberation of all humanity and for making a democratic life possible to understand the women’s party as the most important ideological and political structure for the liberation of society. It will be equally important to further develop the women’s party on this basis and to help this autonomous understanding of the party to prevail not only in Kurdistan but all over the world. 

The system of the co-chairs, or the system of equal representation, has caused a revolution in the political sphere. It has given politics a democratic and free character, thus making a great contribution to the democratization of society. In particular, women, whose eyes are fixed on a free and democratic life, are advocating all these achievements and are waging an enormous struggle for this to be perpetuated and spread in society. As the struggle for women’s freedom has now reached all spheres of life in Kurdistan, our struggle for freedom has become invincible. This is because the women’s struggle for freedom continues to broaden and deepen the general struggle for freedom on a social level. 

The most important feature of the development of the Kurdish women’s movement is that it has developed a science of women on the basis of the women’s liberation ideology and the freedom line of Rêber Apo. In other words, the science of women - that is, `Jineoloji` - ensures that all women related activities are carried out on a correct and scientific basis. It is obvious that the history of the various societies written so far is inadequate and full of shortcomings. Most of the written historical accounts of society and humanity are totally inadequate. Jineoloji corrects this wrong, inadequate and deficient history of society and humanity. In doing so, it will enable humanity and the various societies to know their own history, including all the mistakes and shortcomings, and to better shape their future. In this sense, Jineoloji is one of the greatest mental revolutions in human history. In the course of human history, there have been many mental revolutions and developments. However, they were all flawed and remained incomplete. Accordingly, they are all wrong and insufficient. Jineoloji is a social science that corrects all these mistakes and shortcomings, thus placing the history of ideas on a firm foundation. For social science, this represents the greatest possible revolution. Without the development of Jineoloji and the full disclosure of women’s history, no single social and historical record can be correct and complete. In order to properly understand the social sciences and human history, Rêber Apo first of all reveiled the truth of woman, that is, Jineoloji or the science of woman. He has studied this subject more than any other person who is committed to science and to the freedom of women. Even though Jineoloji as a science is still at the beginning of its development, it has already created huge new horizons in people’s minds. Thus, it has ensured the liberation at people ́s mental level. This will lead to humans breaking all the chains that shape their lives, and to humanity liberating itself. If all humanity wants to achieve a free and democratic life, it must first of all embrace the Jineoloji, that is, the science of women. In this way, it must recognize from the perspective of humanity which developments since the beginning of human history were right and which were wrong. Once she succeeds in this, the destruction of all backwardness, oppression, injustice and all obstacles to humanity will accelerate. Moreover, social freedom and democratic life, both of which are jointly based on women’s freedom, will become the fundamental way of life for all humankind. 

In addition, our women’s movement has a great impact not only on Kurdish women, but on all women in the Middle East. Kurdish women have a great influence on the struggle for freedom of women in Turkey, the Arab world and Iran. The women in Turkey today are very dynamic and exuberant and hence influence the women in the Arab world. They will increasingly turn into a force that will affect the entire Middle East as an engine of change. 

Our vision for the future of women is very clear: The 21st century will be the century of women. Women will significantly shape all of life. Freedom and democracy will be deepened and broadened through women, and thus acquire their true meaning. Everything that does not bear the marks of woman and make woman’s freedom possible will remain incomplete. Humanity today is only half itself. This incomplete life lacks the crucial things. Life with free women will be much more exciting, colorful and beautiful. Accordingly, there will be huge developments in political, social and cultural life. The economy will be completely in harmony with nature. The world in which women’s freedom has been achieved will know no wars. It will be characterized by a free, equal and democratic life. Free life will permeate every place, every word, and every step. The relationship of women and men based on a free partnership will be the foundation of all social life and of a free and democratic life throughout the world.