The Confederation of Kurdistan Communities in Germany (KON-MED) said in a message on 1 May that "this is the day when all workers and peoples fighting against oppression come together in solidarity and express their common will for freedom. It is the day on which all people, regardless of skin color, religion, language or gender, express their desire for a just, democratic and peaceful world."

The statement added: "It is the workers, the farmers and, above all, the women who earn their own living and therefore best understand what this fight for freedom means. Women workers are victims of exploitation and oppression because of their class and gender. It is they who are leading the fight for a democratic and ecological society, for an alternative to patriarchy and capitalism."

Capitalist modernity destroys livelihoods

KON-MED continued: "In particular, through neoliberalism, capitalist modernity has brought not only humans and the values they create, but also the entire natural environment and the entire planet to the brink of destruction through a mentality of unrestricted exploitation and profit. It threatens to destroy all livelihoods. While the profits of multinational corporations are reaching record levels and there is more speculation on the world stock exchanges than ever before, masses of people are losing their jobs, their income and their livelihood."

The statement underlined that "last year, more money was invested in armaments and war machinery worldwide than ever before. Millions of people around the world are displaced, forced to leave their homes due to war and occupation. The fascist policies of the Turkish state, which have become the greatest obstacle to democracy, equality and the liberation of working people, women and peoples in the Middle East, are an example of this. The war expenditure, especially in Kurdistan, is at the expense of the workers. The war leads to the impoverishment of the people, while the rich become ever richer."

Resistance and the search for a better life

The statement continued: "That is why we draw strength and hope from the revolution in Rojava, from the Jin, Jiyan, Azadî uprising led by Kurdish women in Iran and, last but not least, from the liberation struggle of the Kurds in the Turkish part of Kurdistan who are fighting against Erdoğan fascism. The hope is that radical alternatives will increasingly become the subject of discussions at international level and of struggles on the streets. Whether Indian farmers, textile workers in Bangladesh, European workers, global environmentalists or Kurdish women - the resistance and the search for a better life continues."

KON-MED invited "all feminist, ecological and democratic movements, all young people, all women and all resistant societies to organize with us within the framework of democratic world confederalism. We must rethink and recognize that another world is not only possible, but already a reality, and that we must fight to ensure that everyone in this world can live a life of dignity."

The way to a solution is to build democratic modernity together

The statement said that "the authoritarian regimes and the capitalist states are waging a brutal war against the peoples and want to silence our political representatives and resistance leaders. That is why the Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, who today represents the paradigm of democratic modernity, has been imprisoned for 25 years with the help and support of the capitalist states. And in complete isolation for three years. On this international day, it is our duty to protest against this torture and attack.

Today it is more necessary than ever to counter the three pillars of the ruling system - capital monopoly, industrialism and the nation state - with a grassroots democracy based on a shared economy, an ecological industry and a democratic nation. They serve to divide us and thereby weaken us. The way to a solution is to build democratic modernity together."