21 trade unions in the Spanish State published a statement called Towards a political and democratic resolution in Kurdistan; freedom for Abdullah Öcalan.

The trade unions who signed the text are as follows: CCOO – CGT – CIG – Confederación Intersindical – Sindicat COS – CSI Asturies – CUT Aragón – CUT Galiza – ELA Sindikatua – ESK Sindikatua – IAC Catalunya – Intersindical Catalana – Intersindical Valenciana – LAB Sindikatua – MTC Canarias – OSTA – SAT Andalucia – Solidaridad Obrera – STEI Balears – STEILAS Sindikatua – UGT.

The statement said: "15 February 2025 will mark 26 years since the capture of Abdullah Öcalan, the historic leader of the Kurdish movement and a central figure in the struggle for the rights and self-determination of the Kurdish people. Since 1999, Öcalan has been held in solitary confinement on the prison island of Imrali. His imprisonment is a symbol of the broader repression of Kurdish demands, but also of Turkey's difficulty in finding a political and peaceful solution to a conflict that has lasted for decades."

The statement added: "The release of Abdullah Öcalan not only represents justice for a man imprisoned in conditions that violate international law and the Turkish legal system itself, but is also a crucial step towards building a lasting peace between the Turkish state and the Kurdish people. Over the years, Öcalan has repeatedly expressed his willingness to negotiate and promote peace, making proposals for the recognition of Kurdish rights within a democratic and pluralistic Turkey.

The practices used on the prison island of Imrali have spread throughout the country to stifle any form of dissent and opposition that sees a political solution to the Kurdish question as a possible turning point towards a democratic transformation of the entire Middle East. By imprisoning Abdullah Öcalan, the Turkish state not only aims to isolate him physically as an individual, but also seeks to stifle the democratic achievements that have emerged from his ideas."

The statement recalled that "on 28 December 2024, a delegation from the DEM Party, consisting of MPs Sırrı Süreyya Önder and Pervin Buldan, met with Abdullah Öcalan on the prison island of Imrali. This was the first full meeting with Öcalan in nine years, following negotiations in 2015 between the Turkish state and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that were broken off by Erdoğan. This meeting was preceded by a family visit in October with his nephew Ömer Öcalan.

Although this was a positive sign, considering that Öcalan had been in total isolation for almost four years, the conditions of his detention remain unacceptable and continue to be an obstacle to a possible new peace process. Indeed, if the talks initiated in Imrali were to lead to a new phase of negotiations, they would be neither fair nor transparent if one of the parties were forced to participate in them in prison conditions, without the possibility of communicating freely with its political movement and the Kurdish people.

Democratic Confederalism, proposed by Abdullah Öcalan, has triggered a social awakening throughout Kurdistan. The principles of gender equality and the construction of a democratic and ecological society are at the basis of important processes of transformation, and are sources of inspiration for numerous revolutionary movements around the world."

The trade unions said that "why the unions signing this manifesto" they "continue to push to create the political conditions that allow us to move from a scenario of violence and war to a democratic scenario that promotes a political and democratic resolution to the Kurdish question. Peace in Kurdistan is a good thing for all parties, and although peace always has powerful enemies, it is necessary to convince the parties that peace is a win-win situation.

That is why the international community cannot look the other way and must explore political mechanisms with the aim of seeking peace with justice in Kurdistan, because it would undoubtedly be very good news for the region and for the entire world. Today more than ever, Abdullah Öcalan presents himself to the world as a political figure in defense of peace, democracy and the rights of peoples, and we believe that those of us who identify with these democratic principles support the efforts to move from a scenario of conflict to a scenario of democratic resolution."