During the 225th week of vigil in front of the UN, Kurds saluted the 12th Congress of the PKK and called on Turkey and international institutions to take responsibility.
A vigil by the Democratic Kurdish Community in Switzerland has been taking place in front of the UN headquarters in Geneva since 25 January 2021. Every Wednesday, activists stage a protest in front of the United Nations building to demand the release of Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan. The action is carried out as part of the 'Dem dema azadiye' [Time for Freedom] campaign and directed against the isolation of the Kurdish leader on the Turkish prison island of Imrali, the Turkish occupation attacks on Kurdistan, the massacres committed in Kurdish territories and the silence of the UN.
During this week's demonstration, which is held at a tent set up in Nations Square where the UN Office is located, activists paid tribute to Ali Haydar Kaytan and Rıza Altun, two founding leaders of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party), whose death was announced by the PKK on Monday.
Speaking after a minute of silence in memory of the martyrs, Osman Tekin, Co-Chair of the Geneva Democratic Kurdish Community Center, said: “With the PKK's decision to disband, a period in the history of struggle has come to an end, and a new period has begun in line with Leader Öcalan’s practice of resistance. The spirit of the new period will be shaped by the struggle for the common freedom of the peoples and the physical freedom of Leader Öcalan.”
Tekin pointed out that the PKK's decision to dissolve itself places responsibility on Turkey and international powers, saying, “Without the freedom of our leader, there can be no talk of a democratic solution or lasting peace. The Turkish state must correctly interpret this process and pave the way for the freedom of Leader Öcalan. Similarly, all international institutions, especially the UN, must go beyond messages of hope and take concrete steps.”
Tekin also addressed the international community, saying, “Raise your voices against the absolute isolation of Leader Öcalan. Respect the will of the Kurdish people. Silence is complicity in crime.”
Following the speeches, a press statement was read out, emphasizing that the struggle would continue uninterrupted until Abdullah Öcalan was physically freed.
