17 Kurdish Children on Hunger Strike in Turkish Prison!

'Snapshots' of a Turkish soldier's tour of duty in Kurdistan proudly posted on Facebook!

A Turkish soldier casually posts his 'snapshots' of his 'tour of duty' in the South East of Turkey. (NW Kurdistan)

After they spotted by a #TwitterKurds Twitter and were highlighted on social media they were quickly taken off Facebook within one hour.

But before they were, many #TwitterKurds downloaded them to provide, as evidence of Turkey's mindset and crimes towards the Kurds.

They offer an insight into the minds of the Turkish army's brutal war against the PKK.

Normal rules of decency and Geneva conventions are thrown away and bodies of Kurdish guerilla fighters are mutilated and abused to a psychologically profoundly disturbing extreme.

Bodies are buried in shallow unmarked graves against International conventions of rules of conflict.

In any other country there would probably be an immediate enquiry with resulting cases of prosecution but this is Turkey where you can post your crimes online like holiday pictures with the knowledge you will not be touched.






Extraordinary and a graphic example of what sort of country Turkey really is!

WARNING!

HERE ARE OTHER MUCH MORE GRAPHIC IMAGES FROM THE SAME WEBSITE

PUBLISHED HERE!

Kurds Join the Social Media Revolution!

Free All Kurdish Children From Turkish Jails!

Seventeen children who were taken into custody by the Turkish state authorities in Mersin following the funeral of HPG (People's Defence Forces) guerrilla Sadık Kaya four mounths ago, have begun a hunger strike to protest against the fact that they have not even yet appeared before a judge.

The children had joined the funeral of Sadık Kaya on 6 October 2011 together with hundreds of other people.

They had been taken into custody after the funeral and accused of making propaganda for an illegal organization.

Speaking to ANF Emine Orhan, mother of jailed 16 years old Jiyan Orhan, said the kids are not in good condition.

"The kids - said EMine Orhan who visit her daugther her week - have been left in a cell, no judge have called them yet".

Mersin Human Rights Association (IHD) had released on Tuesday the worring reality of kids in prison. Indeed there are 130 kids under 18 in Mersin jail.

They are all charged with "throwing stones at the police" and "joining demonstrations".

The Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan had vowed to do "whatever it takes" to crash Kurdish resistance, "men, women, children, no matter what they are I would do whatever it takes".

Despite Turkey's pretence at reforming the law in relation to jailing children after the case of Berivan Sayaca was highlighted in the media, after an international campaign, in July 2012, according to the National Judicial Network in Turkey there are now a record 2,221 mostly Kurdish children in Turkey's jails!

Please join our campaign to Free All Kurdish Children in Turkey's Jails!

Sign our petition here.

Please actively join our FB campaign page and respond to the children's decision themselves to take the drastic action of a hunger strike!

'The Kurdish Revolution!' Amazing Historical BBC Footage of Peshmergas Kurdish Revolution!

Part 1.

Part 2.

Part 3.

Contrast the above 'Revolutionary' Kurdistan with a BBC Video from today!

Hevallo @ KSMG2012

#TwitterKurds Quiz on Kurds and Kurdistan

Tonight's Host @Wekhevxwaz

Are you ready for the first ever #TwitterKurds Quiz? We will begin shortly!

Our Quiz is about to begin! All are welcome to participate! Tweet your answers using hashtag #TwitterKurds! 1st correct answer gets point!

Quiz will consist of _ questions about Kurdish history, geography, literature, culture & current events. Tweet answers to #TwitterKurds!

First one to tweet the correct answer to #TwitterKurds gets the point! Winner will be announced at end of quiz.

#TwitterKurds After each question, I will announce the person who answered correctly FIRST. The next question will be asked shortly after.

@Hevallo will be keeping score, and winner will be announced at the end of quiz! Don’t forget to include #TwitterKurds hashtag in tweets!

Any questions about the quiz before we begin?? #TwitterKurds

1 First question! #TwitterKurds: Which legendary Kurdish poet is buried in his garden in Qamişlo?

Cigerxwîn

2 #TwitterKurds: Who is the writer of the critically acclaimed play inspired by Kurdish people, 'Mountain Language'?

Harold Pinter

3 #TwitterKurds: The first Kurdish newspaper, Kurdistan, was published in 1898, in what city?

Cairo, Egypt

4 #TwitterKurds: What famous landmark is located in the city of Zaxo, (Southern Kurdistan)?

Pira Delal/ Delal Bridge

5 #TwitterKurds: The oldest known man-made religious structure is located in a Kurdish city. Name the city & the ancient landmark.

Urfa/Riha a place called Göbekli Tepe

6 #TwitterKurds: Name two Kurdish singers/musicians originally from Western Kurdistan.

Answer: Ciwan Haco, Lorîn Berzincî, Narîn Feqe, Miço Kendeş, Suzana Barmanî, Abbas Ahmed, and Şeyda, Seîd Gabarî

7 #TwitterKurds: True or False? Adherents of the Yezidi faith are forbidden to cut their mustache.

True

8 #TwitterKurds: In what month and year did the revolution of Shaykh Ubayd Allah of Nihri take place? (Kurdish spelling: Şêx Ubeyd Ellah)

Sept 1880

9 #TwitterKurds: In what year was the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) formed?

1992

10 #TwitterKurds: Which organization hosted the first PKK training camp?

Palestine Liberation Organization

11 #TwitterKurds: What is the name of the popular comedy shows made by Kurds from Qamişlo?

Bavê Teyar

12 #TwitterKurds: What is the name & year of the treaty signed by Turkey, France, Great Britain & Italy which promised independence for Kurds?

Sevre 10 August 1920

13 #TwitterKurds: In which city was this monument built in memory of those who faced one of the most horrible tragedies in Kurdistan? http://t.co/UB70Jax

Halabja

14 #TwitterKurds: Which Kurdish engineer, born in Cizîr in 1136, was best known for writing Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices?

Ebûlizê Cizîrî (Al-Jaziri)

15 #TwitterKurds: Which day is observed as the “holy day” in the Alevism faith?

Thursday

16 #TwitterKurds: Ayn al-Arab is a Kurdish city whose name was changed to Arabic by the Syrian government. What is its original Kurdish name?

Kobanê

17 #TwitterKurds: Mt Ararat is seen as a symbol of Armenian nationalism, but it's also significant to Kurdish nationalism. Who is buried there?

Ehmede Xani

18 #TwitterKurds: What significant event/s took place in Cizre (Cizîr) in the spring of 1992?

Thousands of Kurds began an uprising in the Newroz celebrations in '92 in Cizîre. 17 ppl were killed, many were injured and 100s were arrested.

19 #TwitterKurds: Where was the Kurdish poet, Pîremêrd born?

Slêmanî

20 #TwitterKurds: Black roses grow naturally in only one place in the world. In which Kurdish city can you find black roses?

Xelfetî (Halfeti) in Northern Kurdistan!

21 #TwitterKurds: Which of the following ancient tribes is NOT believed to have been ancestors of the Kurds? Hurrites, Amorite, Guti, Cassites

Amorite

22 #TwitterKurds: Which former Prime Minister, of a large country outside of Kurdistan, considered themselves to be Kurdish?

Benazir Bhutto – Pakistan

23 #TwitterKurds: True or false? In 1999, the Kurdish TV channel, MEDYA TV lost its broadcasting license in London.

False

24 #TwitterKurds: In which Kurdish city does Munzur River begin?

Dêrsim

25 #TwitterKurds: In 1872, Yezidis requested exemption from military service in the Ottoman army. Why?

One of their arguments was that they were forbidden from wearing the color blue!

26 #TwitterKurds: Name the leader who served under this flag. http://yfrog.com/obqceg

Qazî Mihemed

27 #TwitterKurds: What does the Zazakî phrase, “ez têşano” mean? (Alternate spelling: “ez teyşano”)

I am thirsty

28 #TwitterKurds: As part of “Turkification” of SE Turkey, many names of Kurdish places were changed. Name 3 (include Kurdish & Turkish name)

Amed – Diyarbakir | Êlih – Batman | Mêrdîn – Mardin | Nisêbîn – Nusaybin | Colemêrg – Hakkari | Gever – Yuksekova | Bazid – Dogubayazid, etc etc

29 #TwitterKurds: Historians believe the word “Kurd” originated from the Sumerian word “Kurti” which refers to what?

People of the mountains

30 #TwitterKurds: What is the name of PKK leader, Abdullah Ocalan's sister? Bonus point for anyone who can post a photo of her w/ Leyla Zana!

Fatma Ocalan

31 #TwitterKurds: How many rays are on the sun featured on the Kurdish flag? What do they represent?

21

32 #TwitterKurds: While it is widely believed the 21 rays on the Kurdish sun represent Newroz (21st of March), this is another common theory.

Yezidism

33 #TwitterKurds: Name the legendary Kurdish military commander who was the uncle of Saladin (Selahedînê Eyubî).

'Lion of the Mountains' or Shirkuh Şêrko


34 #TwitterKurds: This 17th century Kurdish woman was the first female Rabbi in Judaism. What was her name?

Asenath Barzani

35 #TwitterKurds: The colors of the Kurdistan flag are red, white, yellow and green. What does each color represent?

Blood, light, peace, nature

36 #TwitterKurds: In what year was the first Kurdish political party established in Syria & what was it called?

1957; Kurdish Democratic Party in Syria (KDPS)

37 #TwitterKurds: A large number of Kurds in Turkey practice the Alevism faith. What does “Alevi” mean?

Alev means fire. Worshiping fire, the sun & the earth. Kurdish Alevis are called Kizilbaş (redheads)

38 #TwitterKurds: Who was the female Kurdish MP who ripped apart the Turkish Parliament after the brutal massacre of 35 civilians in Roboski?

Gülten Kişanak

39 #TwitterKurds: “Agir ketiye dilê min, xew nakeve cave min. Çima tu ji min dûr ketî, bêje roniya cave min.” Who first sang these lyrics?

Beyto Can

40 #TwitterKurds: On January 21, 2012, the Kurdish community of London hosted a successful event to discuss the importance of what?

Kurdish Social Media Gathering 2012

Selahattin Demirtas MP Speaks in UK Parliament. Tuesday 31st Jan 2012.

PUBLIC MEETING ON TUESDAY 31 JANUARY 2012

Reversing the spiral of repression in Turkey: the Kurdish view
Time for a real democratic opening to the Kurds

Come and hear the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) perspective on the current situation inside the country:

Selahattin Demirtas MP, Chair of the BDP
Other speakers include Lord Rea and Jeremy Corbyn MP

The meeting, hosted by Hywel Williams MP, will be held on Tuesday, 31 January 2011 from 6.30-8.30pm at Wilson Room, Portcullis House, Westminster, SW1.

The escalating repression inside Turkey presents an alarming situation. The rising conflict needs urgently to be halted with renewed actions to resolve the issues by peaceful means and the
restarting of negotiations.

At present a stalemate persists inside Turkey and the situation on the ground is rapidly deteriorating. Long gone is any talk of a “democratic opening” towards the Kurds and with it the hopes for the start of a political solution to the Kurdish question. Last summer hopes were high amid reports of secret talks between government representatives and the PKK, including imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, but the emerging dialogue broke down without agreement. A tough and uncompromising stand adopted by the ruling AKP to clamp down on Kurdish aspirations has only increased social tensions and unrest among the Kurdish community. Thousands of Kurdish activists, including elected politicians, BDP mayors, academics, lawyers and journalists, have been arrested in recent months as part of a new campaign of repression against independent Kurdish activities. At the same time, the Turkish Army has intensified its operations inside Turkey and northern Iraq, with bombardments and operations against Kurdish guerrillas. Mr Ocalan has been denied access to his lawyers, most of whom are themselves now in jail, in violation of his rights as a detainee under international conventions.

On 28 December Turkish F-16 war planes dropped bombs on Kurdish civilians from Robososki village, Sirnak, who were travelling just south of the Turkish border in the mountains of northern Iraq, killing 35 of them aged between 13 and 28. The incident, which Turkish officials admitted had been an error, provoked widespread outrage and protests leading to accusations of genocide and allegations that chemical weapons were being used by the army. This appalling massacre has added to the tensions leading to further alienation of the Kurdish people from the government in Ankara. The dangerous situation threatens to get out of control and demands an urgent change of policy. The situation points to the need for the re-establishment of peace talks towards a negotiated settlement between Turkey and the Kurds.

Selahattin Demirtas, on a brief visit to London, and other speakers will address these urgent issues.

The meeting is supported by Liberation, Kurdish Federation UK, Kurdish Community Centre Haringey, Halkevi Kurdish-Turkish Community Centre, Roj Women Association and Peace in Kurdistan Campaign

For information contact:
Peace in Kurdistan
Campaign for a political solution of the Kurdish Question
Email: estella24@tiscali.co.uk
Contacts Estella Schmid 020 7586 5892 & Melanie Sirinathsingh - Tel: 020 7272 4131

Patrons: Lord Avebury, Lord Rea, Lord Dholakia, Baroness Sarah Ludford MEP, Jean Lambert MEP, Alyn Smith MEP, Bairbre de Brún MEP, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Hywel Williams MP, Elfyn Llwyd MP, John Austin, Gareth Peirce, Julie Christie, Noam Chomsky, John Berger, Edward Albee, Margaret Owen OBE, Mark Thomas

‎3-4-5 February 2012 Conference in Hamburg Challenging Capitalist Modernity -- Alternative Concepts and the Kurdish Quest

Challenging Capitalist Modernity – Alternative Concepts and the Kurdish Quest" is the title of the three-days conference which will take place at the university of Hamburg on 3, 4, 5 February.

Three days in which discuss theoretical and practical efforts for an alternative way of life. This conference will provide an opportunity to catch up with the transformation of the Kurdish society and movement as well the alternatives they propose.

The program is full and speakers range from Norman Paech to Antonio Negri (author of Empire), from Immanuel Wallerstein to Achin Vanaik, from Nuray Mert to Muzaffer Ayata, from Wolf-Dieter Narr to Ferda Cetin.

In recent years, the Kurdish freedom movement has developed and transformed itself away from the traditional ways of its Marxist-Leninist national liberationist roots. This conference aims to place and open the transformation and search for an alternative of the Kurdish movement and society with that of the global discussions and quests. It also hopes to be an international exchange at an academic level about the worldwide theoretical and practical efforts to intervene against the capitalist normality. This will also – but not only – be about the Kurdish example.

All speeches and discussions will be translated simultaneously into English, German, Turkish and Kurdish (Kurmanji).

In order to register yourselves please send an email to networkaq@gmail.com. You can find further information and the program at www.networkaq.net.

The conference is organized by the Network for an Alternative Quest:

KURD-AKAD – Network of Kurdish Academics • YXK – Association of Students from Kurdistan • Kurdistan Report • Informationsstelle Kurdistan (ISKU) • Cenî – Kurdish Women's Bureau for Peace • International Initiative “Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan–Peace in Kurdistan”.

The conference is supported by by Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l'amitié entre les peuples (Movement against Racism and for Friendship between Peoples, France), Mouvement de la Paix (Peace Movement, France), LAIKA Verlag (publishing house).

Media partners, il manifesto and Junge Welt.

ANF / HAMBURG

UK Lawyers Protest at Turkey's Jailing of Kurdish Lawyers!

PRESS RELEASE

24 January 2012 For immediate Release

24th January - International Day of Solidarity with Lawyers in Turkey

Jeremy Corbyn MP joins UK lawyers protest at the Turkish Embassy

Tuesday 24 January 2012, 12-1pm 43 Belgrave Square, SW 1

The day of action on 24th January, which saw simultaneous actions by lawyers taking place in major cities across Europe, was marked in London with a protest outside the Turkish Embassy, and organised by CAMPACC and Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers, to highlight the intolerable conditions faced by lawyers in Turkey.

Jeremy Corbyn MP and Prof Bill Bowring the President of the European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and World Human Rights were joined by lawyers Margaret Owen, Michael Ellman, Hugo Charlton, Ali Has, Arman Banirad and human rights activist Estella Schmid from CAMPACC and Peace in Kurdistan Campaign.

“The Day of the Endangered Lawyer wants to bring to public attention the widespread human rights violations in Turkey against with lawyers seeking to represent victims of are themselves increasingly being subject to arrest and prosecution. We are here today to show our solidarity with our Kurdish and Turkish colleagues who are being arrested and prosecuted simply for carrying out their normal professional duties. Severe restrictions are routinely placed on the way they represent and relate to their clients with, for example, the taping of conversations, which breaches the principle of confidentiality. The broad definition of terrorism under Turkey’s anti-terror laws is at the root of the problem and it means that lawyers can be detained for representing clients who are accused of terrorism “ said Professor Bill Bowring


The state’s actions against the country’s lawyers culminated in the mass arrest of some 36 Turkish and Kurdish lawyers during simultaneous raids carried out in several Turkish cities and provinces on 22 November 2011 as part of the continuing KCK operations, which are a key part of the state’s oppressive measures against the Kurdish people. The lawyers arrested include members of the legal team of Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The lawyers remain in custody.


The petition and letter by the Endangered Lawyers initiative which Jeremy Corbyn MP tried to hand in on behalf of the organisation was refused by the Turkish Embassy. The police officer at the entry of the Turkish Embassy was under strict instructions not to allow the delivery of any letters. For information we attach the petition/letter and urge you to circulate it.

The Day of the Endangered Lawyer was organized this year by three European lawyers’ associations: the European Democratic Lawyers (AED-EDL, www.aed-edl.net), the European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and World Human Rights (ELDH, www.eldh.eu) and the European Bar Human Rights Institute (IDHAE, www.idhae.org). Together they represent lawyers all over Europe.


We urge you to support the main demands of this lawyers’ initiative which is calling for the following:


· Repeal of The Turkish Anti-Terror Law of 1991 which protects the security of the state at the expense of the freedom and security of individuals and violates international human rights law;


· The immediate release of all lawyers detained for political reasons;


· A fair trial for defendants in the KCK trial, including permission for foreign legal observers to attend the trial;


· An international independent investigation into the actions carried out in Turkey against lawyers and other professionals such as journalists in order to hold those responsible for these arrests accountable for violations of basic human rights.




Photos (attached)
1. Jeremy Corbyn MP attempts to deliver a letter to the Turkish Ambassador to the UK


2. left to right: Estella Schmid, Margaret Owen, Hugo Charlton, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Prof Bill Bowring, Ali Has and Michael Ellman.

3. Ali Has, Hugo Charlton, Margaret Owen



For further information:

CAMPACC (Campaign Against Criminalising Communities)

e-mail: estella24@tiscali.co.uk

www.campacc.org

Roj TV in the Land of the Snow Queen!

By Naila Bozo.

Once upon a time there was a troll, Hans Christian Andersen wrote. This troll was the worst of the trolls, he was the Devil and the Devil had a mirror.

It was a wicked invention; everything good and beautiful became revolting and disgusting when reflected by the mirror.

One day, the Devil flew around in the air with his mirror, reflecting the divine sky but it was too much beauty for the mirror to handle. It broke into millions of pieces, some as small as grains of sand. They fell onto the ground, but also into the hearts and eyes of men, women and children whose heart froze to ice and whose eyes could now only see that which was unpleasant and evil.

The Verdict Of ROJ TV

Not many miles away from the birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen and merely 137 years and a few months after his death, the verdict of the trial of the Kurdish TV-channel ROJ TV was announced.

We were 500 snowmen outside the court in Copenhagen, paralysed and silenced by the cold gushes of wind. Then, we heard a scream of joy; we all melted and became a sea of flames.

I was burning and freezing when I turned my back to the dancing crowd, bowed my head and tweeted ”we won.”

We did not win. Yes, ROJ TV was allowed to keep broadcasting from Denmark but only because of formalities in the Danish penal law; a penal law so vague and obscure that the satellite provider, Eutelsat, suspended its agreement with ROJ TV and shut down its satellite signal to avoid being part of ”terrorist activities.”

The Danish court ruled that ROJ TV has acted as a mouthpiece for terror. This ruling was based on the judge’s conviction that ROJ TV is controlled by PKK, a Kurdish rebel group listed as a terror organisation by the European Union, the United States and Turkey, in regard to both finance and content. Therefore, the court sentenced the two companies behind ROJ TV to pay a fine of approximately 900,000 dollars, a verdict that was appealed to High Court three days later.

The verdict of ROJ TV is 190 pages long. The following section will present the essential conclusions that were summarised by the Danish newspaper, Jyllandsposten.

1 – From February 7, 2008 to February 10, 2010 ROJ TV has acted as a mouthpiece for the terror organisation, PKK.

2 – The TV-station has repeated messages from PKK without presenting other views. The guerrilla is portrayed in a positive way and manner that indicates more than sympathy for PKK.

3 – There is however no proof of these links between ROJ TV and PKK in the period June 10, 2006 to February, 2008 which had also been a count in the charge against ROJ TV.

4 – PKK has ”to a great extent” supported ROJ TV financially from 2006 to 2010

5 – The decision about what ROJ TV is allowed to broadcast is made by a media company in Belgium. The department in Denmark has no influence on what programmes to broadcast.

6 – Documents found in Belgium show that individuals with close relations to PKK have had the final word in regard to what ROJ TV should or should not broadcast about PKK.

7 – The two companies, ROJ TV A/S and Mesopotamia Broadcast A/S, have promoted PKK activities and are therefore sentenced to pay a combined fine of approximately 900,000 dollars.

8 – The companies are acquitted prosecutors’ demand of suspending the broadcasting license in Denmark. The Danish penal law cannot on legal basis confiscate the rights of companies, associations, etc.

One Man’s Terrorist

When the trial of ROJ TV started in August 2011, the court not only had to decide whether ROJ TV was a mouthpiece for terror or not, but also if PKK was indeed a terror organisation as Turkey, the European Union and the United States have listed it to be.

The judge looked at the terror lists, she looked at the extracts from ROJ TV’s programmes selected by the prosecutors and then found herself enlightened enough to declare PKK a terror organisation.

Now, this can nothing but enrage people seeking justice and expecting nothing but justice from a court in Denmark that holds its freedom so dear, so dear.

How can anyone regard Turkey’s terror list trustworthy when Turkey is infamous for its treatment of journalists and its restrictions on freedom of press and freedom of speech all the while referring to its terror law?

How can anyone regard the US’ terror list trustworthy when the US only removed Nelson Mandela from the list 4 years ago, when the US is ignorant enough to think that “by killing people who has killed people we can teach people not to kill people” and when the US still has not closed the most terrifying man-made institution on this Earth, Guantanamo Bay?

How can anyone regard the EU terror list trustworthy when the European Union Court in 2008 annulled its ruling that PKK was a terror group?

How can anyone regard terror lists trustworthy when it is common knowledge that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter?

How can anyone regard terror lists trustworthy when it is always the ”state”, ”the richest and the biggest” that has enough money and power to make up a list, put people on it and say: ”There you go, one terror list, please follow it or I will make your life a living Hell.”

How?

The judge did not even allow for ROJ TV lawyer, Bjoern Elmquist, to present his material about ROJ TV to the same extent as the prosecutors. This has given the prosecutors, who have been criticised for their close and friendly relationship with the authorities in Ankara, plenty of opportunities to portray ROJ TV and PKK as terrorists without the risk of being proven wrong by Elmquist.

An Unjust Law

The entire trial of ROJ TV has been a curious one. This has caused many experts to comment upon the fact that the judge did not take into consideration that she was dealing with a TV-channel and should therefore judge ROJ TV by the rules that apply for the media.

If the media is not allowed to interview the part in a conflict called the terrorist, then who is? Yes, ROJ TV may have portrayed the Kurdish guerrillas as freedom fighters, but PKK is after all the resistance movement that was formed as a re-action to Turkey’s oppression of the Kurdish people, a tyranny and brutality only condemned in vague words by the rest of the world.

The Kurdish people and ROJ TV are puppets in a play dominated by world leaders. If the Kurdish people do not speak up, it is massacred by the Turkish state, but if it does speak up, it is silenced by the European Union and United States.

Henry David Thoreau (1817 – 1862), author of the essay “Civil Disobedience”, wrote:

Must the citizen ever for a moment, or in the least degree, resign his con science to the legislator? Why has every man a con science, then? I think that we should be men first, and subjects afterward. It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right. […] Law never made men a whit more just; and, by means of their respect for it, even the well disposed are daily made the agents of in justice.

If the law is seeking to silence the rightful rebellion of the Kurdish people against the barbaric and heartless oppression, then the law is unjust; then the governments are what Thoreau calls the agents of injustice.

ROJ TV has a conscience that cannot remain silent under Turkey’s oppressive regime and is therefore offering itself as being the mouthpiece for the Kurdish people, dwell on this for a moment: mouthpiece for the Kurdish people.

The Kurdish people consist of freedom fighters, only freedom fighters. Kurdistan is freedom for it is borderless and those who fight for freedom are Kurds.

We Face Death

Everything is relative and has to be seen in its context. ROJ TV is not the average TV-channel whose viewers are safe at home and free to speak the language they want, read the books they want, sing the songs they want or even wear the clothes they want.

There was an incident during one court session. The prosecutors were showing an excerpt from ROJ TV and they pointed out that the journalists were wearing PKK-clothing. The looks from the Kurdish audience in the courtroom must have been those of incredulity and astonishment; this was merely another ignorant comment from the prosecutors who, if they had done their research properly and if the judge had not dismissed all Elmquist’s witnesses including Leyla Zana, would have known more about the Kurdish culture and understood that the ROJ TV journalists were wearing Kurdish clothes.

ROJ TV is much more than the average TV-channel; it gives the Kurdish people a sense of unity that one rarely feels because of the brutal division and oppression of Kurdistan. It is the symbol of the peaceful Kurdish struggle for freedom; it is a mouthpiece for freedom, a mouthpiece for our freedom fighters like members of BDP, the pro-Kurdish party in Turkey, and the passionate Kurdish youth fighting for its identity.

ROJ TV is perceived a mouthpiece for terrorism because the world does not know what terrorism is.

ROJ TV is perceived a mouthpiece for terrorism because the human being is a suppressor of oppression.

ROJ TV is perceived a mouthpiece for terrorism because it is alive, it is not afraid of man-made institutions or death.

To be a freedom fighter is to be alive because being constant aware of death makes you kiss the earth softly, rest your cheek on the scabrous bark of a tree and lay your head on sweet smelling moss. To be alive is what the rest of the world fails to be because being safe and comfortable is to be dead. You are only alive if life tastes like the salty sweat that evaporates from your body when you are fighting in what seems to be Hell.

Boiling Blood

Denmark is the kingdom of the Snow Queen and the West is her empire; she reigns it with a coldness that renders her vassals motionless and speechless. The cold winds carry flakes of snow, which the Snow Queen weaves into the clothes of her subjects, thereby hindering the small pieces of the Devil’s wicked mirror from leaving the eyes and hearts of men.

The Snow Queen’s most loyal servant, the vicious and despicable troll, the worst of trolls, the Devil is laughing, his plan is working: Every single one of the cold, dead vassals see only a distortion of that which is beautiful, stunning, ravishing, alive!

The troll and his empress have a weakness, though, Hans Christian Andersen revealed: the small pieces of the troll’s wicked mirror can be melted and oh, who is better to melt ice than the burning Kurd with the boiling blood?

The Snow Queen and the wickedest of trolls can easily be defeated. Every Kurdish freedom fighter has flames shooting from his fingertips, flames kept alive by the blazing, roaring Sun.

As long as the Sun is burning so long will ROJ TV burn; because ROJ TV is the mirror in which the Sun reflects itself.

Originally published on MidEastYouth

Amed Dicle from Roj TV and Kurdish Mayor Abdullah Demirbas's Message to #TwitterKurds Kurdish Social Media Gathering!

Watch Roj TV here!

Click here to Watch ROJ TV!

Selahattin Demirtas MP, Chair of the BDP Speaks in UK Parliament.

Reversing the spiral of repression in Turkey: The Kurdish view

Time for a real Democratic Opening for the Kurds

Come and hear the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) perspective on the current situation inside the country:

Selahattin Demirtas MP, Chair of the BDP

Other speakers include Lord Rea and Jeremy Corbyn MP

The meeting, hosted by Hywel Williams MP, will be held on Tuesday, 31 January 2012 from 6.30-8.30pm at Wilson Room, Portcullis House, Westminster, SW1.

The escalating repression inside Turkey presents an alarming situation. The rising conflict needs urgently to be halted with renewed actions to resolve the issues by peaceful means and the restarting of negotiations.

At present a stalemate persists inside Turkey and the situation on the ground is rapidly deteriorating. Long gone is any talk of a “democratic opening” towards the Kurds and with it the hopes for the start of a political solution to the Kurdish question. Last summer hopes were high amid reports of secret talks between government representatives and the PKK, including imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, but the emerging dialogue broke down without agreement.

A tough and uncompromising stand adopted by the ruling AKP to clamp down on Kurdish aspirations has only increased social tensions and unrest among the Kurdish community. Thousands of Kurdish activists, including elected politicians, BDP mayors, academics, lawyers and journalists, have been arrested in recent months as part of a new campaign of repression against independent Kurdish activities. At the same time, the Turkish Army has intensified its operations inside Turkey and northern Iraq, with bombardments and operations against Kurdish guerrillas. Mr Ocalan has been denied access to his lawyers, most of whom are themselves now in jail, in violation of his rights as a detainee under international conventions.

On 28 December Turkish F-16 war planes dropped bombs on Kurdish civilians from Roboski village, Sirnak, who were travelling just south of the Turkish border in the mountains of northern Iraq, killing 35 of them aged between 13 and 28. The incident, which Turkish officials admitted had been an error, provoked widespread outrage and protests leading to accusations of genocide and allegations that chemical weapons were being used by the army. This appalling massacre has added to the tensions leading to further alienation of the Kurdish people from the government in Ankara. The dangerous situation threatens to get out of control and demands an urgent change of policy. The situation points to the need for the re-establishment of peace talks towards a negotiated settlement between Turkey and the Kurds.

Selahattin Demirtas, on a brief visit to London, and the other speakers will address these urgent issues.

The meeting is supported by Liberation, Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) UK, Kurdish Federation UK, Kurdish Community Centre Haringey, Halkevi Kurdish-Turkish Community Centre, Roj Women and Peace in Kurdistan Campaign

For information contact

Peace in Kurdistan

Campaign for a political solution of the Kurdish Question

Email: estella24@tiscali.co.uk

Contacts Estella Schmid 020 7586 5892 & Melanie Sirinathsingh - Tel: 020 7272 4131

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Video compiled by @Wekhevxwaz for #TwitterKurds Kurdish Social Media Gathering 2012.

Kurds Protesting Outside French Embassy Right Now!

A protest is being held today, 23 January at 12-1pm, outside the French Embassy, 58 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7JT. Join the Kurdish people in condemning Eutelsat’s decision to suspend broadcasts by Roj TV!


KURDISH FEDERATION UK

Kurdish people condemn Eutelsat’s unjust attack on Roj TV

The Kurdish people condemns the decision of Paris based satellite company Eutelsat to suspend the broadcasts of Kurdish television channel Roj TV.

Eutelsat has attempted to justify its action by claiming that the move is an inevitable response to the Danish Court ruling earlier this month and that it wants to avoid being “an accomplice to terrorist activities”.

But the Danish court only fined Roj TV for alleged links with the PKK; it stopped short of revoking its license and allowed it to continue broadcasting. Roj TV is also strongly contesting the Danish court’s decision and is currently appealing against the ruling. Eutelsat has therefore taken a decision that goes much further by taking Roj TV off the air.

The decision can only be seen as a partisan one that favours Turkey and discriminates against the Kurds. Turkey, as everyone must be well aware, has been waging a never ending campaign against Roj TV in order to suppress this independent voice of the Kurdish people and prevent the Kurdish perspective on what is going on inside Turkey from reaching a wider audience.

Turkey’s oppression of the Kurds has been rightly described as one of the great forgotten injustices of our time. Roj TV was founded to ensure that the Kurds have a voice and that what is happening to them cannot be forgotten and ignored. It is the only mass effective voice that the Kurds possess and it is vital that is continues. The attempts to prevent it from broadcasting are a blatant example of the continued persecution of the Kurds and provoke a deep sense of injustice among the Kurdish people.

The action by Eutelsat pre-empts the outcome of Roj TV’s appeal and can only be condemned as provocative.

Turkey wants to silence the Kurds as part of its ongoing policy of denial of Kurdish identity and repression of the Kurds as a people. This decision by Eutelsat comes at a critical time when the Turkish state is stepping up its repressive measures against the Kurds on various fronts: politically, legally and military, with the mass arrests and show trials of journalists, lawyers and politicians and increased military operations.

Roj TV is providing information that it vital on abuse and atrocities committed by the Turkish military, as in the mass killing by Turkish warplanes of 35 Kurdish civilians, known now as the Roboski Massacre, which took place on 28 December 2011. Without the broadcasts of Roj TV the full truth about such appalling incidents would never see the light of day and Turkey would get away with even worse atrocities against the Kurdish people.
22 January 2012
Contact: KURDISH FEDERATION UK

Kurdish Social Media Gathering Camera 1

Camera 1 Kurdish Social Media Gathering.

Murat Karayilan on AKP's Policy of Attempted Annihilation of Kurdish Freedom Movement!

ERBIL, Iraqi Kurdistan -- In an exclusive interview with Rudaw, Murat Karayilan, the leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) said five years of peace talks with Turkey failed because the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan did not honor promises it made during the talks. Karayilan said that unless Turkey grants Kurds autonomy, full cultural rights and releases all political prisoners, the PKK will refuse to lay down arms.

Rudaw: Kurds in all parts of Kurdistan expressed solidarity for the death of 35 civilian Kurds killed in North Kurdistan by Turkish warplanes. On the official level in Iraqi Kurdistan, condolences were offered too. Was the solidarity up to the level expected?

Murat Karayilan: The government of Justice and Development Party (AKP) has declared a comprehensive war against the Kurdish people and Kurdistan’s struggle for freedom. Through that war, it is trying to subordinate the people. The Turkish state and other occupiers (of Kurdistan) are doing all they can to prevent Kurds from benefiting from the redesigning and reshaping of the Middle East. They also intend to besiege the Kurdistan Region. In the past, a common position shared by Turkey, Iran and Syria to that effect existed and it continues up to this day. They want to weaken the Kurdish people. That is why they carried out the attack in Roboske. But the reaction by the Kurdish people against it and their protests everywhere was very important.

“The occupiers cannot massacre Kurds no matter which part of Kurdistan or what village they may live in.”

First, the reaction showed that the occupiers cannot massacre Kurds no matter which part of Kurdistan or what village they may live in. Kurds support one another. This is a strong message to occupiers.

Second, the protests and solidarity by the Kurdish people showed that Kurds are an active nation. It is true that there are boundaries separating Kurds, but all Kurds share similar sentiments.

I respect and salute the valuable stance of the Kurds, especially in South (Iraqi) Kurdistan. Also it is a positive and laudable position that the president of the Kurdistan Region (Massoud Barzani) sent a delegation to attend the first day of the funeral for the victims.

The (Turkish) Prime Minister (Recep Tayyip Erdogan) has thanked the chief of staff of the military. He said “nothing has been done deliberately and it was a natural thing.” It is noteworthy that he did not apologize but chose to thank the officers who carried out the massacre. If 35 Turks had been killed in an ambush in Bursa or Izmir, the whole government would have rushed there. There would have been at least three days of public mourning. But they did not do anything about this incident because the victims were Kurds.

There is a clear discrimination. Why a delegation by the Kurdistan Region’s president crosses the border to attend the funeral, and all lawmakers from the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) in Ankara and Istanbul attended the funeral, but no one from the government attended? Even the governor of Sirnak did not attend. It was clear they did not consider the incident a cause of concern and later started the (New Year) celebrations.

Apology is not enough. If there is rule of law, then those who gave orders for the attack and the perpetrators must be held accountable. They have committed a crime by killing 35 innocent unarmed Kurds, 17 of whom were children. This is barbarism. Where in the world would you see this kind of brutality in the 21st century? This shows it is an occupying country. The massacre is a threat to all Kurds. They carried out the massacre to threaten Kurds. This threat is evident from their (government) position and from the position of the army.

Rudaw: You said you will avenge the lives of the victims of the Roboske attack. Don’t you think it is better to take the revenge through political means and not armed methods?

“Where in the world would you see this kind of brutality in the 21st century?”

Murat Karayilan: This is what I said, “Let nobody be sad. We won’t let the blood of these individuals be wasted. We will want justice for them.” I said that and it can include everything. Our people are staging protests everywhere and demand accountability. We are demanding revenge through diplomatic, political and legal means. If it is needed, then we will do it through military means. In other words, we owe it to the 35 young men who were killed. We will not let their blood be wasted. We will make the Turkish occupier pay for it.

Rudaw: How do you see the remarks of Turkish deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc that Kurdish rights will be enshrined in the new constitution of Turkey and that Kurdish identity and language will be recognized?

Murat Karayilan: Arinc’s remarks are not serious. We see these remarks within the framework of the war waged against us. From time to time they float such remarks in order to create some hope for some parties. Then they create rift and weakness. If Arinc is serious, then let him end the isolation of (PKK’s jailed leader Abdulla Ocalan at) Imrali. Let them release the 5,000 Kurdish politicians who have been put in prison for no reason. Let them stop the killing operations. Let them take practical steps. Why do they talk in parliament? Now there is pressure on our people and society. Our leader is in prison. The democratic Kurdish politicians are all in prison. The heads of Kurdish civic groups, Kurdish unionists, elders and young, Kurdish women, lawyers and journalists are in prison.

Who have they left outside the bars? They have detained all the leading figures and do not let them defend themselves in their mother tongue. They ban Kurdish language in courts. After all this, Arinc says ‘we will grant Kurds all their rights?’ How can we even believe him? His remarks are not serious. They make these remarks to hide the massacres and the truth about who they are. Therefore, such remarks have no value.

Rudaw: What about the policy of openness that Turkish Interior Minister Besir Atalay has been talking about? Have they talked to you or the Kurdish side in general about it? What do you expect from them?

Murat Karayilan: There are no talks between us and the Turkish state. As far as I know there are no talks between the Turkish state and any Kurdish group. First we have to ask what the first “democratic opening” was about to have any hopes about this second one? This man, Besir Atalay, lied to the whole society for two years. He said ‘we will bring about democratic opening and then it became clear that it was a plan to eliminate the Kurdish liberation movement.

“Just like Saddam they say “we are brothers. We are friends and we will grant you your rights.”

Now that they are in a limbo again, they say they will start the second opening. At the same time, Atalay says, “we work on the basis of unilateral integration.” They want to integrate Kurds into themselves. That means melting Kurds. There is nothing as recognizing the Kurdish nation in the mind and philosophy of the AKP. They say the Kemalists’ denial of Kurds was wrong. There are Kurds, but the Turkish people will absorb everybody. They don’t say there are two peoples in Turkey. They say there is one people.

They don’t want to accept Kurds as the second nationality in Turkey. If they accepted this, then there will be no problem. They say Kurds are our brothers and can sing and speak in their language. But they don’t accept Kurds as a nation. They use a political, mysterious and hypocritical language. This Besir Atalay is an expert on using hypocritical language. All his words are based on lies.

We have no meetings with them and pin no hopes on their remarks. They are making such remarks because they intend to wage a complicated war. They are intent on war, just like Saddam. They follow Saddam’s policies. Didn’t Saddam say he would give Kurds autonomy only to end the Kurdish revolt? Didn’t he form fake autonomy through his servants? That is what the AKP is doing, too. Just like Saddam they say “we are brothers. We are friends and we will grant you your rights.” But they don’t do that in practice.

In that sense, they are worse than Saddam. Their fascist and tyrannical mentality is not different from Saddam’s. In some respects, they are harsher than Saddam was. They don’t accept Kurds as a nation. Everything they say is aimed at undermining the Kurds and create rifts between the Kurds and crush their spirit of resistance. Within this framework their media and journalists, writers and experts are waging a psychological warfare against the Kurds day and night. AKP ministers are overseeing this warfare. That is why we see their words in that same context. Until they take practical steps, no one should believe in them.

Rudaw: Was the return of two groups of PKK members to Turkey in 2009 the outcome of peace talks between your group and Turkey that took place in Oslo?

“The meetings in Oslo were serious efforts to find a lasting solution.”

Murat Karaliyan: The meetings in Oslo were serious efforts to find a lasting solution. It is not wise to reveal the details of all the meetings now. But there were continuous talks in Oslo and on Imrali Island. The return of two groups of PKK as was part of the peace talks and it was in fact the suggestion of Erdogan himself. For that he sent a team to meet with our leader (Abdulla Ocalan) and a team to meet with Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani. We received the message from both sides and after a meeting; we decided to send to Turkey two groups of our members.

The peace process was about to reach a deadlock and to help it continue we saw the idea of sending home two teams of our members as wise. Erdogan made that suggestion in order to strengthen his position. Among our members we chose those who didn’t have any court orders against them in Turkey. The two groups were from our guerrillas and from the Makhmur camp. They peacefully crossed the Habur Bridge and said, “We have come on the invitation of leader Ocalan. We have no regrets and we have come for peace,” For those alone they are no in jail.

Rudaw: What role did the Kurdistan Region play in those talks? It is said that some peace talks were held in Salahaddin.

Murat Karayilan: To arrange the talks between us and Turkey an international organization was formed in Europe. The talks started with our members in Europe. At the same time talks were held in Imrali. At first the talks were not direct. They were carried out through intermediaries for two years. But later they gradually become direct talks and 4-5 delegates from each side carried out direct talks for three years. Each meeting ended with some results. But unfortunately the Turkish side never honored the outcome of any of the meetings.

On the one hand they would meet with us and on the other hand they would arrest Kurdish politicians and launch military operations. We would ask them why they did that and they would reply, “It is done by another wing and we cannot stop them. We will try to stop them.”

Later on we realized that that was not the case. They were all in on it. In Turkey there is only one person who runs everything and that person is Erdogan. He decides everything. There is no dissent in his government and if there, he has brought it under control. But after he managed to strengthen his position, he showed his true side. He turned violent. He became confident and stopped listening to anyone.

“Unfortunately the Turkish side never honored the outcome of any of the meetings.”

As for talks in Salahaddin, that is not true. Talks were held only in Oslo. But we had informed our brothers in Iraqi Kurdistan and they were aware of the talks. They were happy about the talks, but played no role.

Rudaw: In a previous interview with Rudaw, you said that the decision by the ETA group in Spain to lay down arms was the right move, but that the situation in Turkey is not suitable for PKK to lay down arms. Can you explain what it takes for the PKK to lay down arms against Turkey?

Murat Karayilan: The Basque region in Spain has autonomy. In Spain all the different ethnic groups were granted autonomy. The different regions in Spain are exercising their rights through autonomy. The same thing is necessary in eastern Turkey. Turkey needs to write a new constitution like Spain. The Turkish government is currently in a process of writing a new constitution and I believe Spain can be used as an example. You asked me to explain this issue in numbers. Here are the following solutions:

1. Kurds and their identity must be recognized in Turkey’s new constitution.

2. Self-determination, autonomy or federalism must be granted the Kurds in Turkey.

3. The Turkish government must grant the Kurds all cultural rights and allow Kurds to study in their mother tongue. All ethnic groups in Turkey must be equal in their cultural rights. The Kurds should have as many rights as the Turks have in their country.

4. Today, our leader and more than 8,000 of our members are in Turkish prisons. They are all innocent. If you say because we are at war with them, the Turks have killed more of us. More than 17,000 Kurds were killed on the orders of Turkish leaders. They burnt more than 5,000 of our villages. First, they must release our leader and all the other prisoners.

I can count more crimes but I don’t need to mention them all here. In order for the Kurdish community to progress socially, economically, and politically, the government must compensate the victims and plan many projects in the Kurdish areas. The government should take steps in this regard. A social peace process in Turkey must be created. How can these things be done? In the new constitution Kurdish ethnicity must be recognized and the Kurds must be granted self-determination. The Kurds should be allowed to study in their mother tongue. I would give priorities to these points.

“As long as the Turkish military is a threat to the Kurds and their achievements, the guerrillas will continue to bear arms.”

Many people in South Kurdistan say that the PKK is still choosing armed struggles. That’s a wrong interpretation. It is true that we have weapons and we are still at war, but we are not saying armed struggle is the solution. We only use arms to defend ourselves. We have more people in the political struggle. You can see how people pour into the streets and carry out activities. We consider these activities as struggle and uprising. We will reach our goals through people’s voice and we mostly depend on this. But the Turkish government uses force to destroy us and so we carry arms to defend ourselves. As long as the Turkish military is a threat to the Kurds and their achievements, the guerrillas will continue to bear arms.

If the new constitution recognizes the Kurdish ethnicity in Turkey and there are no more threats on the Kurds inside Turkey, I believe the Turkish military will cease its military operation into territories of South Kurdistan as well. Once the Turkish government accepts the Kurds inside Turkey, it will no longer consider the Kurds outside Turkey as enemy. As a result there won’t be any more threats on north and south Kurdistan. That is when the issue of laying down arms will come into practice. But, none of these things have happened yet. If we lay down arms the Turkish government will destroy the Kurds completely. Today, when the BDP and other Kurdish organizations are courageously speaking out inside Turkey, it is because of the force balance between the guerrillas and the Turkish government.

The Turkish government wants to destroy the guerrilla by using expressions as ‘outlaw group’ and such, to stop the Kurdish youth from joining us. The relations between the Kurdistan Region and Turkey are essentially based on this balance of force. Today, the guerrilla is playing a role in protecting the Kurds’ achievements. Once these threats are gone, we will discuss the subject of laying down arms.

Rudaw: Avni Ozgurel, a writer for Radikal newspaper says that the PKK will lay down arms by next summer. What can you tell us about this?

Murat Karayilan: Not only Avni Ozgurel, Taha Akyol and some other writers have said the same thing. I don’t know on what basis they make such claims. I believe they are aware of the plans of the AKP government. The AKP government plans to declare a war against us this winter that will continue through spring. By that time we are being destroyed and the government will have reached its goals and a new stage will begin for Turkey.

“Their 2011 plan was to destroy us the way Sri lanka destroyed the Tamil Tiger guerrillas.”

Maybe it is based on this theory that they make such statements. AKP says ‘we will strike the core of the PKK and we will force them to surrender to our demands and lay down their arms.’ It seems the AKP has such plans and those people are aware of it. But that is impossible. How? Because they cannot destroy us. They will be destroyed instead. We have experience and we have a nation behind us. Our forces will be able to stand against Turkey in every way. They have attacked us many times. They pressured our leadership psychologically and isolated our leader just to force us to give in to their demands. Their 2011 plan was to destroy us the way Sri lanka destroyed the Tamil Tiger guerrillas.

They conducted many military operations. They wanted to divide the Kurds. They pressured our nation. They wanted to scare us. But so far the AKP government has not reached even one goal. The Turkish government failed in its plans. Today, our nation is stronger than ever. Kurdish politicians are prepared. The guerrillas are stronger than ever. That’s why they (Turkey) cannot destroy us. Source: Rudaw

No Matter How Cold They Try to Make Our Winter, We Will Experience Spring Together

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Roboski Massacre. Video.