"No turning back till our demands are met", say prisoners on hunger strike
"No turning back till our demands are met", say prisoners on hunger strike
We publish an interview with a prisoner called Önder who has been on hunger strike for 42 days. The interview was conducted by a group of prisoners and then sent out to DIHA (Dicle News Agency).
* Could you tell us about yourself? Why and when have you been jailed and what would you say as to the reason for your taking part in this action?
- I was born in Van’s Baþkale district in 1981. I was arrested in February 2010 and put in Amed Prison as a result of a political operation against Kurds as I had been taking part in a youth movement before my arrest. The political approach which brought along my arrest continued during my trial. I was denied the right to self-defense in mother language during my trial which ended up with my being sentenced to 24 years in prison. The Kurdish problem has today reached a climax and dozens of people are dying every day. This situation has reached a point of non return. I believe everyone should do something for a solution, therefore I also want to do something. I already know that making yourself heard in prison will cost your life but I also see that it has become a torture to watch our comrades dying every day, like my desk mate at high school and my homemate at the university. That is why I have decided to join the hunger strike until our two demands are accepted.
* You have joined the hunger strike on 12 September. You already declared the aim of your action but would you once again highlight your aim and demands?
- We went on this hunger strike for Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan’s freedom and mother language for Kurds. These are two important issues for the Kurdish people. Anyone dealing with the Kurdish issue today, including the Turkish state and the government, have acknowledged that Mr. Öcalan needs to be seen as an interlocutor. This is at the same time the reason why he has been subjected to imprisonment in Ýmralý for fourteen years and isolation for the last fourteen months. In consideration of what we have lived and witnessed in this period, it becomes apparent that the solution of the Kurdish problem, ending of clashes and establishment of peace can be summarized within the demand for Öcalan’s freedom. His freedom or isolation is therefore directly related with the solution or the deadlock in the Kurdish problem. Our second demand is concerned with the issue of the right to mother tongue which is still banned to Kurds who are therefore being deprived of a basic human right. We cannot accept being subjected to all kinds of abuses because of our demand to defend ourselves in our mother language at courts.
* What do you think the AKP government aims to achieve with the isolation imposed on PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) leader Abdullah Öcalan?
- As is known, the Turkish state and government had been conducting negotiations with Mr. Öcalan before the isolation period of the last fourteen months. During these talks, Mr. Öcalan presented a necessary contribution for the Kurdish problem and the solution of the PKK issue together with some other good developments such as a peace group’s coming from Kandil. However, it became obvious in this period that the AKP government had neither a solution nor a project or intention for the solution of the Kurdish problem. The isolation on Öcalan started in a process and environment where the AKP government attempted adventures beyond its power in the Middle East and turned most of the projects Mr. Öcalan presented concerning peoples in the Middle East. In doing this, Turkey was supported by Western powers in its intention to isolate Mr. Öcalan from regional developments. In the current situation, the theories and plans of the AKP government seem to have gone wrong as it has once again started to mention negotiations now.
* The Kurdish language is prohibited in all areas. What should Kurds do in this respect?
- In consideration of what the Turkish state and government has done to the Kurdish language so far, it is clear what we should expect from the government. We need to ensure the improvement and institutionalization of our language by ourselves by refusing to receive education in the language of a state that doesn’t provide education in our mother language. The government will in this way either recognize Kurds and Kurdistan or face the fact that is is an exploitative state.
* You stated that your act will continue until it obtains a result. What would you ask the Kurdish people and democratic opinion to do?
- As the Kurdish people have experienced all kind of pains, like being subjected to death, abuse and illegal treatment, we now stand at the point of either freedom or death. As an activist, I will continue my hunger strike till the end. I believe our people and the democratic opinion will show the right attitude.”
* Could you tell us about yourself? Why and when have you been jailed and what would you say as to the reason for your taking part in this action?
- I was born in Van’s Baþkale district in 1981. I was arrested in February 2010 and put in Amed Prison as a result of a political operation against Kurds as I had been taking part in a youth movement before my arrest. The political approach which brought along my arrest continued during my trial. I was denied the right to self-defense in mother language during my trial which ended up with my being sentenced to 24 years in prison. The Kurdish problem has today reached a climax and dozens of people are dying every day. This situation has reached a point of non return. I believe everyone should do something for a solution, therefore I also want to do something. I already know that making yourself heard in prison will cost your life but I also see that it has become a torture to watch our comrades dying every day, like my desk mate at high school and my homemate at the university. That is why I have decided to join the hunger strike until our two demands are accepted.
* You have joined the hunger strike on 12 September. You already declared the aim of your action but would you once again highlight your aim and demands?
- We went on this hunger strike for Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan’s freedom and mother language for Kurds. These are two important issues for the Kurdish people. Anyone dealing with the Kurdish issue today, including the Turkish state and the government, have acknowledged that Mr. Öcalan needs to be seen as an interlocutor. This is at the same time the reason why he has been subjected to imprisonment in Ýmralý for fourteen years and isolation for the last fourteen months. In consideration of what we have lived and witnessed in this period, it becomes apparent that the solution of the Kurdish problem, ending of clashes and establishment of peace can be summarized within the demand for Öcalan’s freedom. His freedom or isolation is therefore directly related with the solution or the deadlock in the Kurdish problem. Our second demand is concerned with the issue of the right to mother tongue which is still banned to Kurds who are therefore being deprived of a basic human right. We cannot accept being subjected to all kinds of abuses because of our demand to defend ourselves in our mother language at courts.
* What do you think the AKP government aims to achieve with the isolation imposed on PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) leader Abdullah Öcalan?
- As is known, the Turkish state and government had been conducting negotiations with Mr. Öcalan before the isolation period of the last fourteen months. During these talks, Mr. Öcalan presented a necessary contribution for the Kurdish problem and the solution of the PKK issue together with some other good developments such as a peace group’s coming from Kandil. However, it became obvious in this period that the AKP government had neither a solution nor a project or intention for the solution of the Kurdish problem. The isolation on Öcalan started in a process and environment where the AKP government attempted adventures beyond its power in the Middle East and turned most of the projects Mr. Öcalan presented concerning peoples in the Middle East. In doing this, Turkey was supported by Western powers in its intention to isolate Mr. Öcalan from regional developments. In the current situation, the theories and plans of the AKP government seem to have gone wrong as it has once again started to mention negotiations now.
* The Kurdish language is prohibited in all areas. What should Kurds do in this respect?
- In consideration of what the Turkish state and government has done to the Kurdish language so far, it is clear what we should expect from the government. We need to ensure the improvement and institutionalization of our language by ourselves by refusing to receive education in the language of a state that doesn’t provide education in our mother language. The government will in this way either recognize Kurds and Kurdistan or face the fact that is is an exploitative state.
* You stated that your act will continue until it obtains a result. What would you ask the Kurdish people and democratic opinion to do?
- As the Kurdish people have experienced all kind of pains, like being subjected to death, abuse and illegal treatment, we now stand at the point of either freedom or death. As an activist, I will continue my hunger strike till the end. I believe our people and the democratic opinion will show the right attitude.”
