Cemil Bayik, Co-president of the Executive Council of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), answered questions by journalist Ciwan Tunç on developments in the Middle East and the Kurdish hostility of the Turkish state in a program at Stêrk TV.

In the second part of the program Bayik dealt with the extermination campaign in Bakur (North Kurdistan) and the importance of Kurdish national unity for a solution of the Kurdish question.

Highlights from Bayık’s comments are as follows:

Overall solution of the Kurdish question

For a solution of the Kurdish question we cannot limit ourselves to just one part, we have to deal with the whole of Kurdistan and the democratization of the Middle East. Essential for a solution is Bakur (North Kurdistan). As long as the problem is not solved in Bakur, there can be no solution in the other parts either. This has become apparent both in Rojava (West Kurdistan) and in the independence referendum in Bashur (Southern Kurdistan). It is Turkey that is most hostile to the Kurds and wants to destroy them. If this fact is not understood, if not everyone positions themselves against Turkey and supports the struggle in Bakur, there will be no progress in the other parts either. The Kurds must start their struggle from this fact.

Another important issue for the Kurds is national unity. As long as national unity is not taken as the basis, the Kurdish question cannot be solved. Today the Third World War is taking place. There are great dangers, but at the same time there are great opportunities for success. If the Kurds want to achieve results, they must achieve national unity. Conditions for this exist. People in all four parts of Kurdistan and the people living abroad want Kurdish unity. The political parties must see this wish and implement it.

The situation in South Kurdistan

In this context I would also like to say something about Bashur (South Kurdistan). The people there have done a lot for Rojava. I salute them. Young people have gone to Rojava and participated in the resistance, some have fallen as martyrs. In Bashur a boycott campaign against Turkish products has been started, several times the convening of a Kurdish congress has been demanded. The people stand against the occupation and the massacres of the Turkish state.

The real problem in Bashur are with the political parties. Sometimes they make good statements, but sometimes their statements are based on international states. This means that they are still under the influence of these states. They must free themselves from it. They must be guided by the demands of the people. If they do this, there will be no obstacle before national unity left. It is high time for national congress.

The emergence of a global movement

The more Kurds develop their national unity, the more democracy in the Middle East must be developed. The model of the democratic nation must be further developed. Every achievement for the Kurds also means an achievement for the whole region and mankind. The Kurdish question has become a world problem. It does not only concern four states and the Middle East, but is now a universal question. The movement that is now emerging and developing is also a global one. We see this in the worldwide solidarity with Rojava. The people show solidarity with the resistance and oppose the invasion and the massacres of the Kurds. At this point, however, there is a deficiency.

We must address this deficiency and eliminate it. So what is it? People are only fighting for Rojava. But they should also do something for Bakur. The Turkish state has the same policy as Rojava as in Bakur. The invasion of Rojava also takes place in Bakur and Bashur. In Bakur politicians are arrested, municipalities are usurped, thousands of people are put in prison, all Kurdish institutions are closed, Kurdish place names and songs are banned, Kurds are forced to migrate and assimilated. Any means for political activity is eliminated. In this way they intend to continue with the Kurdish genocide. All this takes place on daily basis for all the world to see.

A world to live in

Solidarity with Rojava without simultaneous solidarity with Bakur against the Turkish state - something is missing in such a struggle. This weak point must be remedied. And we must make this reality understandable. In the past, massacres of Kurds were generally accepted, but today the Kurdish question has spread all over the world. All liberal and democratically minded people in the world stand up for the Kurds. They see hope in the struggle of the Kurds, a world in which they can live. The years of struggle and the high price paid by the Kurds are not in vain. The struggle has served its purpose. For the Kurds this means a great gain, which we have to perceive.

The starting point for the Kurdish genocide is Bakur. Anyone who only stands up for Rojava and does not oppose what the Turkish state does in Bakur is cheating himself. Exclusive solidarity with Rojava does not lead to a solution. If the extermination campaign against the Kurds in Bakur is stopped, the Turkish state will no longer be able to carry out massacres in other parts of Kurdistan. As long as there is no resistance against the genocidal practices in Bakur, Turkey will profit from it and occupy the other parts. If the danger is to be averted in Rojava and Bashur, action must be taken against the danger in Bakur.

Silence legitimizes Turkish politics

Turkey must be asked why it arrests Kurdish politicians, bans political activity, confiscates municipalities and abolishes everything that belongs to the Kurds and Kurdistan. Turkey says that it has nothing against the Kurds. Even Kurdish place-name signs are being removed, is that not directed against the Kurds? They are challenging the Kurdish language, Kurdish songs and Kurdish culture. They want everyone to base on the Turkish culture, the Turkish language and thus to deny themselves. They want everyone to work for the Turks and Turkey. Is that not a hostile attitude towards the Kurds? How can the Kurds ever accept this and remain silent about it?

As long as the silence prevails, Turkey will continue its annihilation policy in Bakur and also in the other parts of Kurdistan. Right, Turkey is supported by NATO and other countries, but it is in fact encouraged by silence. This legitimizes the policy of the Turkish state. This must be tackled. Then Kurdish national unity will develop and the struggle will improve basing on its essential purpose. In this case the annihilation policy against the Kurds cannot be continued.