14 July marks the 41st anniversary of the beginning of the death fast in the prison of Amed (Diyarbakır). The hunger strike in 1982, in which Mehmet Hayri Durmuş, Kemal Pir, Akif Yılmaz and Ali Çiçek gave their lives, went down in history as "the great death fast of 14 July" and was a decisive action against the burial silence after the 1980 military coup in Turkey.

The Central Headquarters of the People's Defence Forces (HSM) released a statement commemorating the upcoming anniversary of the great death fast, which includes the following:

"On the anniversary of the Great Death Fast of 14 July, we remember all our martyrs with respect and gratitude in the persons of comrades Mehmet Hayri Durmuş, Kemal Pir, Akif Yılmaz and Ali Çiçek, the immortal pioneers of this historic resistance. We salute Rêber Apo [Leader Abdullah Öcalan] who developed the consciousness of these comrades that created this immensely significant act of resistance. This act has defined the spirit, the line and the understanding of our resistance for almost half a century. In this sense, we also salute the comrades who led this resistance and Rêber Apo, who has created such a great resistance and defended the stance for free humanity for 24 years in the torture system of Imrali. We reaffirm our pledge to move resolutely towards victory by keeping this attitude and resistance, this consciousness, this spirit and this form of life and struggle alive always and everywhere.

"We congratulate all our comrades on the Day of National Dignity"

The fascist Turkish state, through the PKK cadres in the Amed dungeon, attacked all Kurds and humanity with the most severe tortures and tried to break their values and identity. But it met with huge resistance. The resistance of the Great Death Fast of 14 July was developed with the consciousness of using one's life to defend dignity and identity against the inhuman conditions of repression, torture and tyranny in the dungeon of Amed. This resistance represents the historical revelation of the Apoist spirit of sacrifice and a corresponding form of struggle and makes it the guiding principle. It is an attitude that aims at victory and has displayed an indomitable spirit of resistance under impossible and inhuman conditions and brutal torture. This historic resistance of the leading cadres of our party is an honour for all their companions and the Kurdish people. Thus, 14 July has acquired the significance of a day of national dignity. On the occasion of National Dignity Day, we congratulate the patriotic Kurdish people and all our comrades who are fighting everywhere, especially in the prisons.

"The resistance of 14 July has shown us the way for 41 years"

The resistance line of July 14 has contributed decisively to the return of the Kurdish freedom guerrilla to the homeland and to the great offensive of August 15 [1984]. It has shown us our way in the struggle for 41 years. The Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla has made this struggle an indispensable part of its revolutionary life in the spirit of the Apoist spirit of sacrifice. It is resisting today as it did on 14 July. This consciousness and spirit of July 14 shapes the stance of the guerrilla in Northern Kurdistan and the epic resistance in the Medya Defence Zones, especially in Zap, Avaşîn and Metîna. Hundreds of our comrades in Northern Kurdistan and the Medya Defence Zones have fallen fighting in this spirit and confronting the enemy with an indomitable will. They did not let go of their brave and determined stance until their last breath. Comrades Xebat Kop and Zana Rojda held off an entire army with their epic resistance in pairs, withstood all high technology, turned a position into a great resistance fortress and defied the enemy and death.  

With their stance, the two are the latest representatives of the invincible heroic stance of the Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla and the continuation of this line. It has been proven that as long as the Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla fights in this understanding, consciousness, spirit and style, victory in the struggle for the existence and freedom of our people will be certain, no matter whether the murderous colonialist enemy attacks with the most inhuman war techniques, uses banned bombs and chemical weapons and mobilises its collaborators.

"We will follow in the footsteps of the martyrs of the great death fast"

We renew our pledge that we will continue to walk in the footsteps of the martyrs of the Great Death Fast of 14 July and fight in their way. We will achieve the goals of our martyrs and realise their dreams. As the Freedom Guerrilla of Kurdistan, we underline our determination to crown the flag of resistance handed over to us by the martyrs with the victory of the Kurdistan Freedom Revolution. We salute all those who are resisting in the belief of victory and all our patriotic people."