The internationalist network Serhildan (Kurdish for "uprising") has been coordinating solidarity with the Kurdish liberation movement in Belgium and France for two years. Now the French-speaking regions of Switzerland have also joined the network. On Wednesday evening, the activists introduced themselves at a reception at the University of Geneva.

The welcome was followed by a presentation on the history of resistance in Kurdistan and a presentation of the network. There was also a call for an event as part of the Global Öcalan Books Day on 8 December and for a central demonstration in Geneva on 13 December. The reception ended with Kurdish music.

Why a new solidarity group with Kurdistan?

The Swiss internationalists explained the background to the Serhildan network, stating: "The revolutionary struggle of the Kurdish movement is an inspiration and hope for the struggles of the 21st century. With its radical democratic approach to women's liberation and ecology, the revolutionary Kurdish movement offers profound and concrete paths to emancipation in the 21st century. Having liberated many areas - up to the size of Switzerland - from state control, the movement offers one of the most important revolutionary realisations of our time.

Internationalism is a necessity: the victory of our Kurdish comrades is inextricably linked to our own victory. In our globalised world, where the market and capitalist ideology are spreading more and more, it is necessary that we unite our struggles to defeat this system that oppresses and kills wherever we are in the world. So let us open many fronts in the struggle against capitalism. Let's forge links between these fronts! Long live the internationalist solidarity of the peoples! To fight strongly, we must be organised!

Share to rule better? Let's unite to take away the ground from this strategy of the powerful. Our group should be a place of meeting and organisation for all comrades who have come into contact with the struggle of the Kurdish people in one way or another and who want to fight alongside them. In the face of low-intensity wars, we want a stable organisation that reaches from the small to the large.

The fight against capitalism is a protracted struggle. All too often, international solidarity is only mobilised during shock actions, massacres, invasions, etc. But war cannot be reduced to these spectacular moments. The strategy of our enemies has evolved into a low-intensity war: targeted killings, attacks on civilian structures that make life hell for the population, etc. We must adapt our struggle to this new situation and create long-term organisations, build a solid base and gain influence day by day. We are building our actions on this strategy."