Kurdish activists holding a vigil in front of the UN headquarters in Geneva since 2021 denounced the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan and called for enhanced struggle to ensure his freedom.
A vigil by the Democratic Kurdish Community in Switzerland has been taking place in front of the UN headquarters in Geneva since 25 January 2021. Every Wednesday, activists stage a protest in front of the United Nations building to demand the release of Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan. The action is carried out as part of the 'Dem dema azadiye' [Time for Freedom] campaign and directed against the isolation of the Kurdish leader on the Turkish prison island of Imrali, the Turkish occupation attacks on Kurdistan, the massacres committed in Kurdish territories and the silence of the UN.
Today’s vigil began with a minute of silence paying tribute to the YPJ (Women’s Defense Units) fighter Roşna Egîd who lost her life as a result of a Turkish airstrike on 2 September.
Kasım Erik from the Democratic Kurdish Community Center addressed the crowd and denounced the Turkish state’s dirty war in Kurdistan with the participation of the mercenary groups it backs.
Erik saluted the relentless struggle of the Kurdish guerrillas against Turkey’s genocidal war, a part of which, he said, is the aggravated isolation imposed on Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan.
“In response to the Turkish state’s attempts to leave the Kurdish people without a leader, will and struggle, we will continue our struggle until the freedom of Leader Öcalan is achieved,” he said.
Speaking after, Mehmet Latif Çelebi, co-chair of the Democratic Kurdish Council in Geneva, noted that Öcalan has not been heard from for 30 months and held the states that were a party to the international conspiracy against Öcalan in 1999 responsible for the strict isolation imposed on him today.
“The isolation of Öcalan underlies the Turkish state’s attacks against Rojava (West), Bashur (South) and Bakur (North) Kurdistan today. Leader Öcalan is the true architect of peace and freedom. His physical freedom must be ensured immediately,” said Çelebi and called for participation in the 31st International Kurdish Cultural Festival to take place in Frankfurt on 9 September.
