More than thirty-thousand friends of Kurdistan rallied in Berlin on Saturday in order to voice their support for the peace process and demand that the close to twenty-year long ban on the PKK in Germany be lifted.

The marched was organized by various Kurdish civil society organizations, human rights groups, and attended by Kurds and friends of Kurdistan from around Europe. Germany leftist groups, as well as other Turkish migrant organizations such as DİDİF, AGİF and Partizan.

Demonstrators gathered at Alexanderplatz from where the march began. Police attempted to confiscate Abdullah Öcalan posters and KCK flags but despite police pressure many such posters and flags were seen during the event and marchers frequently shouted slogans such as “Long Live President Apo.”

The march passed from the city center to the Brandenburg Gate next to the German Bundestag where a rally had been organized by the BDP. The co-presidents of the BDP, Selahattin Demirtaş and Gütlan Kışanak, both spoke together at the rally.

Demirtaş told the crowd “Right now our people are experiencing oppression in the countries they live in. Let everyone know that those who live freedom take ownership of their claims despite all obstacles. The result of this is that today people are meeting with the leader of the Kurdish People Abdullah Öcalan. They are in dialog for peace and for a solution. If Europe or Germany want to contribute, they should end the ban on the PKK. Because the ban on the PKK in Germany is not contributing to peace but to hopelessness. If Germany wants to support the peace process they need to end the ban. The should behave genuinely.

Demirtaş reminded the crowd that there are one million Kurds living in Germany, saying “I ask you how can one million people be terrorists? No one can ban these many Kurds and claim them that they are terrorists. Kurds living here. They organize, the work and they contribute to the country’s economy. Germany should see this. The government that has recently emerged from the elections should pay attention to these demands of the Kurds. They should correct a wrong that has existed for years.

On the Banning of PKK Posters and Flags, Demirtaş told the crowd that “That these flags and posters were banned is a legal scandal. It is against universal values. This ban does not have any meaning. Because Öcalan is in everyone’s room, home and heart.” Demirtaş want on to mention the revolution in Rojava and how it was an example of freedom for the peoples of the Middle East.
Later Özlem Alev Demirel , who spoke in the name of European Peace and Democracy Parliament, criticised the ban on the PKK and asked why the PKK was banned when the racist NPD was allowed to operate freely in the country. Heike Geiskeid likewise criticized the ban. Finally the rally conluded with music from Hozan Bengîn Agirî and Simar.

* Translation by The Rojava Report