On Saturday 16 November, tens of thousands of Kurds from across Europe marched through Cologne to make clear their support for a peaceful political solution to the Kurdish Question, and their conviction that this must be achieved by the man that millions of Kurds look up to as their leader, Abdullah Öcalan.
The centre of the city shut down as the vast procession snaked its way across the Rhine, with the Severinsbrücke literally – and nauseatingly – trembling under the mass footfall, and back to a rally in Deutzer Werft. I would expect to write about a sea of yellow, but German bureaucratic ‘logic’ has banned the usual Freedom for Öcalan flags with the yellow background, and instead we had his image on a tasteful green that matched the bridge.
The Turkish government raised hopes of new peace negotiations, but continues to demonstrate their determination to crush Kurdish hopes with oppression and violence. While Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Devlet Bahçeli play political games and indulge in sowing confusion, Saturday’s demonstration underlines the sincere and simple response from the Kurdish Freedom Movement, and the support for that message from across the Kurdish diaspora. As expressed in the rally speech of Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) Co-Chair Ahmet Karamus, ‘The Kurdish people do not want conflict, they want peace. If the Turkish state has a project for a solution, the Kurdish people are ready for it.’
Karamus sent a message to Europe, America, Russia and the United Nations that ‘Mr Öcalan is the will of the Kurdish people. Mr Öcalan is ready to take on a role for peace and solution if appropriate conditions are provided.’ And he reminded his listeners that Öcalan derives his power to bring about a solution from their struggle and determination.
Speakers specifically criticised Germany’s complicity in Kurdish oppression through their 31-year-old ban on the PKK and crackdown on Kurdish organisation; and the Co-Chair of MAF-DAD – Association for Democracy and International Law, Heike Geisweid, pulled up Western states and international organisations for remaining silent on the unlawful and inhumane treatment of Öcalan.
A representative from the Kurdish Freedom Movement’s internationalist supporters reminded listeners that it is the task of progressive movements to fight against oppression, militarism, and state violence wherever they live, and that, in doing so, ‘we are fighting against a common enemy’. She demonstrated the universal hope generated by the Kurdish struggle, noting, ‘The movement around Öcalan shows that the struggle against war and capitalism is possible even today.’ And a speaker from the Tamil Freedom Movement reinforced the message of solidarity between different struggles.
The biggest response of the afternoon was reserved for Öcalan’s nephew, DEM Party MP Omer Öcalan, who visited his uncle in prison last month and was able to bring Abdullah Öcalan’s greetings directly to the gathered crowd.