The Executive Council of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) issued a statement on occasion of the eighth anniversary of the Roboski massacre, a bleeding wound in the heart of the Kurdish people.

"Eight years ago, 34 young Kurds were killed by bombing from Turkish warplanes. It is impossible to forget how their torn bodies were transported on mules. We commemorate with respect the people killed by the attack of inhuman, Kurdish hostile forces and we repeat our promise that we will build a free Kurdistan and a democratic Middle East where no people are killed at the borders.

The children of our people have been murdered for centuries by the occupying forces, the genocidal forces, with machine guns and bombs. Yesterday our children, young people, women and old people were massacred in Dersim, Zilan, Koçgiri, Piran, Hênê, Genç, Diyarbakır and Ağrı, today they are killed by bombs in Rojava. Their only fault is to want to live freely in their countries with their own identity, culture and language.

The order for the Roboski massacre was given personally by Tayyip Erdoğan. He was asked what to do, as there could be a PKK member among the 40 to 50 people. Erdoğan gave the order to kill them all. Erdoğan would have given the order even if there had been a thousand children and young people carrying goods on the mules there. This is the very genocidal war that has been waged against the Kurds. For these murderous forces, even a thousand or a million Kurds are worthless, let alone one Kurd. This mentality would give the order to fire at a million Kurds too. Indeed, the order for Armenian genocide was also given with the very same mentality. All these massacres and genocides were perpetrated with the fascist mentality advocating that when fatherland is in question, the rest is just a detail. Roboski, also, is a genocidal attack as are all the attacks of the Turkish state against the Kurds.

Impunity for perpetrators

The pilots, the commanding authorities, the commanders of the Air Force and the Chief of General Staff are known, but not a single one of them has been tried or sentenced. Because the order came from above. In Roboski, only those who protested against the District Governor and threw stones were put on trial. The perpetrators were deliberately not punished. This sends a message that it is not a crime to kill Kurds. The Kurds are subject to an imposition that they have no alternative but to surrender, a policy that has been implemented against the Kurds for a hundred years. Whether it is the massacre of Özalp or the JITEM killings, the policy is the same. The criminals in the JITEM trial were all granted acquittal a week ago. Thus, the soldiers and the police are told that they can kill Kurds at will. For this reason, Turkish soldiers and policemen massacre and oppress Kurds against all constitutional, legal or social values on the order of Tayyip Erdoğan. This clearly shows that neither the massacres of Roboski, nor of Cizre, Nusaybin or Sur will be taken to court.

Only through the democratic struggle for freedom can accountability for these massacres be achieved. Perpetrators of all these crimes will be brought to account with the establishment of a free Kurdistan, a democratic Turkey and a democratic Middle East.

The Roboski massacre will not be forgotten. The massacres perpetrated during the resistance for self-government will not be forgotten. The one who gave the order and said: 'Whether women or children, do what is necessary' and those who killed women and children will not be forgotten. Just like those murdered in Roboski, Cizre, the mothers like Taybet, the children murdered in Shehba are a reason for the struggle for a free Kurdistan. In memory of the martyrs, a resolute struggle for a free Kurdistan will be given, a democratic Turkey and a democratic Middle East will be created and the genocidal perpetrators will be brought to account.”