Paul Karavanagh, one of the directors of the Martin Mc Guinnes Paece Foundation, said that Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan's mind is not in prison. "He leads with his writings and teachings. It gives hope.”
Paul Karavanagh, one of the directors of the Martin Mc Guinnes Paece Foundation, also works as a consultant for the North of Ireland Education Authority. He said: "If your mind is in prison, you are also in prison. It is clear that Abdullah Öcalan's mind is not in prison. He is putting forward a political program."
Paul Karavanagh was given 5 life sentences after his arrest in 1981. He was released after the signature of the 'Good Friday' in 1998.
Karavanagh said that Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan has been held in Imralı for 25 years, and added: "It is just one of these coincidences: as I was getting out of prison, Öcalan was getting in. Everyone's prison experience is different. I would say, you live in a prison in your mind. If your mind is in prison, you are in prison too. It is clear that Abdullah Öcalan's mind is not in prison. He very clearly puts forward a political program, a political program that people support. This is so important."
They are afraid of Abdullah Öcalan's ideas
Stating that Turkish President Erdoğan suffered a serious setback in the last local elections and that his attempt to usurp the rights of the people in Van met with public resistance, Karavanagh said: "It may seem like a small victory, but every small victory is a kneeling in the coffin for Erdoğan. The leader of the Kurdish people is in prison, but his mind is not in prison. He still leads with his writings and teachings. He will be feared as long as he lives. They imprisoned him for his ideas. It's what they fear most, but his ideas are now driving change. As seen in the elections. He gives people hope. Even in prison. I think there is no substitute for hope. There is nothing stronger than hope."
He knows negotiation and what he wants
Stating that Abdullah Öcalan is a national leader and has experience in peace negotiations, Paul Karavanagh added: "He understands the negotiation process and knows what he wants. He knows what the outcome he is looking for is and how to get there. It will not be easy. He may not last to see the final path to negotiations, but he has crafted out a way to negotiations. Those who follow him know. They will ask themselves, what would Abdullah Öcalan do? So he will drive them. He will lead the next generation, and the next, and the one after that, until freedom comes."
