Zîlan’s legacy seen as key to the new phase

HPG and YJA Star guerrillas said grasping Zîlan and President Öcalan is key to the new process.

Guerrillas from the People’s Defense Forces (HPG) and the Free Women’s Units (YJA Star) spoke to ANF on the anniversary of the self-sacrificing action carried out on 30 June 1996 in Dersim by martyr Zîlan (Zeynep Kinaci), one of the pioneering cadres of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

Ferman Penaber: “Comrade Zîlan carried out a self-sacrificing action in 1996 in Dersim in response to the assassination attempt against President Öcalan. This was an answer to the occupying enemy, a message saying, ‘You cannot touch President Öcalan under any circumstances.’”

Axîn Nemir: “Comrade Zîlan understood President Öcalan, and through this understanding, she responded both to him and to her people. She had never seen President Öcalan, never lived with him, but she read his works, came to know his ideas, and gave the right answer. Today, we too bear the responsibility to understand President Öcalan correctly and to struggle on that basis. Comrade Zîlan’s letters have become a light illuminating our path. Even now, we place these letters at the heart of our educational programs and continue our resistance accordingly.”

Jînda Çelê: “Comrade Zîlan created the line of the free woman. Thanks to her, the free identity of the Kurdish woman came to the forefront. Women must unite in order to realize their freedom. Our path is the path of martyr Zîlan, and we will follow this path to the very end.”

Azad Mîrza: “Comrade Zîlan was someone who understood President Öcalan; she embodied the spirit of self-sacrifice in the person of President Öcalan. To understand President Öcalan, to understand comrade Zîlan, is the key to the current phase we are in. If we are to respond to this phase, this leap toward peace and democratic society, we must understand and implement the line of President Öcalan correctly. This makes becoming like Zîlan a mission.”

Şoreş Cîlo: “The spirit of self-sacrifice embodied by President Öcalan materialized in the person of comrade Zîlan. We are all followers of this spirit of sacrifice. To be a self-sacrificing militant is to embrace life, to embrace people, society, nature, women, children, the lives of all living beings. The most meaningful life is one lived for society. We have the right to self-defense. Even if the world’s greatest power stands before us, as long as it does not attack us, we will not attack anyone. But if we are attacked, we will defend ourselves to the end. We will continue our struggle on this very basis.”

Baharîn Viyan: “Comrade Zîlan is the goddess of freedom. She is the symbol of freedom for us. We are striving to fulfill our responsibility toward her. We promise that we will continue to follow her path and uphold her legacy.”

Guerrilla Hemze: “Why did comrade Zîlan carry out such an action? This is very important. In essence, she was saying, ‘President Öcalan is not just an individual, but an identity, a definition of a people.’ Today, the line of self-sacrificing militants continues, from Sara to Asya. Martyr Zîlan showed that a free life is only possible through the line of the free woman, and that the measure of socialism is women’s freedom. Our movement continues its struggle on this basis. Comrade Zîlan rejected all forms of slavery, she is our inspiration for life.”

Roj Azad: “Comrade Zîlan never accepted slavery,” expressing that she remains a source of inspiration for their lives. Guerrilla Roj also read aloud a poem he had written for Zîlan.