A condolence ceremony was held at the Democratic Kurdish Community Center in Cologne, Germany, for two founding members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Ali Haydar Kaytan and Rıza Altun. 

Condolences were received by Rıza Altun’s sister Zöhre Altun, his nephew Nurdoğan Aydoğan, and Ali Haydar Kaytan’s sisters Selma and Feride Kaytan. 

The ceremony at the Cologne Democratic Kurdish Community Center (DKTM) was attended by Co-Chairs of the European Kurdish Democratic Societies Congress (KCDK-E), Zübeyde Zümrüt and Engin Sever, representatives of DKTM, politicians, artists, journalists, writers, and many people from Kurdistan. 

The hall where the condolence ceremony took place was adorned with the PKK flag, a photo of Abdullah Öcalan, and portraits of PKK founders Rıza Altun and Ali Haydar Kaytan. A condolence book was placed for both martyrs, where comrades in the struggle and people from Kurdistan shared their reflections and emotions. 

The ceremony began with a minute of silence in memory of the two martyrs, followed by speeches from the Co-Chairs of KCDK-E. 

Zübeyde Zümrüt offered condolences to the families of the martyrs and to the Kurdish people, and said: “We promise to continue and expand this struggle. We renew our vow to keep the memories of our two comrades alive through our resistance.” 

Zübeyde Zümrüt: A society once denied returned to history through them 

Zübeyde Zümrüt also saluted the PKK Congress, stating that the PKK has entered a new phase, a field of struggle shaped by history and fresh beginnings. She emphasized that the process initiated with the call of Abdullah Öcalan marks a new beginning and a source of hope for Kurdish society and the peoples of the Middle East. 

Zümrüt noted that the struggle of the PKK’s leading cadres brought the Kurdish people back onto the stage of history. She said: “Because we came to know ourselves through them. A people who had been broken, denied, erased, and forgotten stepped back onto the stage of history through their struggle. With their lives and their resistance, they wrote a new history. They did so beginning with the martyrdom of Comrade Haki Karer. For 52 years, Mr. Öcalan and his comrades have been writing a new history and have brought the Kurdish people back into the historical consciousness.” 

Engin Sever: This struggle will become rooted in society through them 

The other Co-Chair, Engin Sever, delivered the following speech: “Condolences to the families and to all our people. Condolences to Abdullah Öcalan. With its new congress, the PKK has taken its 52-year honorable struggle into a new phase. Our fallen comrades and their fellow fighters stood at the forefront of the resistance launched under the leadership of the PKK against the century-long policy of denial and annihilation waged against the Kurdish people. This struggle is not merely that of an organization, it is the march of a people to rewrite their own destiny. The founding of the PKK was a moment of hope. The martyrdom of Comrade Haki Karer paved the way for the party's formation. In the prisons, the resistance of Mazlum, Kemal Pir, and Hayri gave this struggle its armed force. The martyrdom of Comrades Ali Haydar Kaytan and Rıza Altun will ensure that this struggle takes root among the people and becomes truly embedded in society.” 

Zöhre Altun: It was our mother who bought Rıza his first weapon 

Afterward, the families of Rıza Altun and Ali Haydar Kaytan took the floor.

Zöhre Altun, sister of Rıza Altun, said: “When Rıza began the struggle 52 years ago, it was our mother who bought him his first weapon. She told him, ‘You will fight in Kurdistan, not in Ankara. The war in Ankara will not succeed, you must go to Kurdistan.’ And Rıza went to Kurdistan. When he returned, our mother asked him, ‘Rıza, how many fascists have you killed?’ He replied, ‘I ran out of bullets.’ And she said, ‘Then I will buy you more bullets, just keep fighting.’ Behind Rıza stood our mother, his uncle, and of course, Chairman Öcalan. They became one with the people and fought for 52 years. Today, if hundreds of people visit us and share our grief, it is because this struggle became theirs as well. What we say to our people is: defend their struggle. So many martyrs, so many sacrifices...!” 

Chairman Öcalan took a risk, defend the struggle 

Zöhre Altun called on the people to defend the struggle, stating that those who fight great wars also achieve great peace. She emphasized: “Some people come to us and say, ‘Congratulations on your peace,’ as if mocking us. But of course, it is not like that. Those who fight great battles are the ones who build great peace. Yes, there are risks. Chairman Öcalan took a risk. But this process has become a matter for the whole world. When I went to Diyarbakır Prison, I told Kemal Pir, ‘Kemal, families are not supporting us.’ He replied, ‘Even if they don’t support you today, tomorrow millions will flood the streets.’ And indeed, today millions have filled the squares, millions have fought, and tens of thousands have become martyrs. But it was the seed they planted, the seed sown by Mazlum, Hayri, Kemal, Rıza, and Fuat. They planted that seed. No one has the right to say, ‘Congratulations on your peace.’ Our struggle will grow even stronger. War is easy, peace is hard. And in this peace process, we say to our peopl: defend the struggle.” 

Feride Kaytan: Their struggle will only grow stronger 

Feride Kaytan, sister of Ali Haydar Kaytan, stated that both Rıza Altun and Ali Haydar Kaytan were among Chairman Öcalan’s first comrades. She shared her feelings with the following words: “They are not dead. This movement has never accepted that notion. Their struggle will grow even stronger. We are confident that the new chapter opened will be crowned with victory. We believe in our own strength. We have never broken the promises we made to our party, to our martyrs, and to our people. This movement has never betrayed the promises made to our martyrs. What has Chairman Öcalan ever declared that has not come to pass? That is why the people stand with him. He has not taken a single step back. On September 12, all other organizations were crushed, yet the PKK took root in the aftermath. People speak about Diyarbakır Prison. There’s a saying from the Armenians: even if rivers were ink and trees were pens, it would still not be enough to describe the pain and suffering we endured. Above all, I bow with respect before the families of the martyrs. So many beautiful souls have joined this movement. When we speak of Comrade Fuat within the family, they often say, ‘He was the most intelligent of us.’ And of course, the most intelligent ones join. That is why the people believed in them, why the people fell in love with them. The people gathered around them because this movement is one that fulfills what it promises. I have been standing with this pain for seven years. What keeps me standing is vengeance. It is the promise we gave to our martyrs and to Öcalan that has held me upright.” 

Aydoğan: Their 52-year struggle showed us how to live and how to resist        

Journalist Nurdoğan Aydoğan, nephew of Rıza Altun, commemorated the May Martyrs in the names of Rıza Altun and Ali Haydar Kaytan, stating: “Their 52-year struggle taught us how to resist and how to live. As their families, we will follow in their footsteps. No one should mourn them or weep behind them. What must be done is to grow and strengthen their struggle. Everyone who feels a sense of loyalty to them must take ownership of this cause and carry it forward. That is why we are not grieving or crying. We will not give joy to those who wish to see us in sorrow. We promise to carry their struggle through to the very end.” 

Selma Kaytan also took the floor, delivering a speech reflecting on the depth of Ali Haydar Kaytan’s character and his commitment to the struggle. 

The visitors responded to the families’ remarks with the slogan “Şehîd Namirin” (“Martyrs are immortal”). 

The first day of the condolence program concluded with a speech by Şenge Kahraman, a representative of the Association of Martyrs’ Families, followed by artist and presenter Şiyar Munzur’s recital of Ali Haydar Kaytan’s poem “I Was Human.” 

The condolence gathering at DKTM will remain open until Saturday. A mass commemoration ceremony is scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 18.