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ANKARA - Abdullah Ocalan's freedom is one of the keys to lasting peace not only in Turkey but also in the Middle East, Green Party MP Lee Rhiannon said "A Democratic Confederation will be a hope for the whole region."

 

Following the developments that started on 1 October when MHP President Devlet Bahçeli went to the DEM Party benches and shook hands with the DEM Party during the opening of the Parliament, a series of meetings with Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan started. Apart from family visits, four political contacts were made from İmralı and on 27 February the Call of the Century, which became a global news item, was delivered. In response to these developments, he met with political parties and finally on 10 April with AKP President Tayyip Erdoğan, MIT Head İbrahim Kalın and Efkan Ala. While no steps have been taken for a month regarding both the convening of a congress by the PKK and Abdullah Öcalan's working conditions, this week a meeting was held with the Ministry of Justice.

 

Green Party Parliamentarian Lee Rhiannon answered JINNEWS' questions about the process. 

 

* On 27 February, Abdullah Öcalan called for ‘peace and a democratic society’. How did you analyse this call when you first heard it?

 

Certainly it's a very significant development for the Kurdish people, for peace and justice in Turkey, something that Mr Öcalan also recognised, and I think for the progressive movement around the world it's very significant because when you're involved in these struggles the strategy and tactics that you adopt have to be quite complex when you have to adapt to different situations. And if anything, it reminded me of Nelson Mandela. Because Nelson Mandela, and I'm aware that Mr Öcalan has understandably been compared to Nelson Mandela for well over two decades and also because he's a very important leader. But also, what reminded me in this circumstance, going back to your question, what was my response when I heard about these developments.

 

Well, Nelson Mandela, he was engaged in armed struggle and was caught a terrorist for a long time, but then they changed the nature of the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, and that, I think, is very significant for all of us in the progressive movement. About that periodically we do need to change our tactics. So I thought the way Mr. Ocalan had handled it, why PKK have also handled it in making the judgments about it that they have brought the issue of the situation in Turkey wall into focus. So I was very impressed with the way it's been handled. I know it's not completely resolved, but it's certainly been very important and I think how it plays out will be important for the whole region.

 

* As you know, there are demonstrations in Europe and many other parts of the world for the freedom of Abdullah Öcalan. Do you think this organised struggle has triggered Turkey to lift the isolation of Abdullah Öcalan?

 

 

Look, if Mr Öcalan is serious about wanting justice, and he talks about it regularly to all the people of Turkey, then he clearly needs to step up here, because Mr Ocalan, because of this extensive involvement in the peace with justice process, the peace with justice process for the Kurdish people, he is an important player here. He really has to be released now. So the logical thing for Mr Erdogan and the leaders in Turkey to do would be to release Mr Öcalan from prison so that he can fully participate in what is, I admit, a very complex process of working out how to bring peace to the whole region. Obviously Turkey is of particular importance here, but we are talking about Iran, Iraq, Syria. There's this incredible complexity going on with Syria at the moment, so I think this really, really should be, it's a critical step. And how, I'm talking to you from Australia, the Australian government almost never talks about Turkey. I can't even remember when the last time was, but the Western government should be putting pressure on Erdogan, how to solve this problem, you have a very important proposal here from Mr Öcalan about how to find a way to peace. Well, he needs to be out of prison to help move that forward and that should be a call from Western governments to the Turkish regime.

 

* Do you agree with the assessment that the call is an opportunity for Kurds, Turkey and the Middle East? If so, could you explain why?

 

These developments, with Mr Öcalan and the PKK talking about reviving a peace process, are significant for the region. We can see the situation in Palestine in Syria. Israel continues to bomb Lebanon and bombs Syria regularly. So there's a tragic loss of life, tragic destruction of infrastructure and so much disruption to economies, to countries that are really becoming dysfunctional, much of it with US support. So it's very important that this peace process gets every support, not just within the region, but globally, because in this day and age, when you have such a disaster, it's not just about one isolated country. It's because a lot of people understandably become refugees, they move to other western countries, there's all sorts of flows here that make it significant. And just from a moral point of view, we should be standing with the Kurdish people to help this peace process move forward. And that's what we should be doing, that's what we should be pressuring Western governments to do. And it would clearly have implications for the whole Middle East region and surrounding countries, given what is happening there at the moment,

 

* When we look at the messages contained in the call for peace, Turkey has still not taken steps for the PKK to convene a congress, and Abdullah Öcalan's working conditions have not been provided. How do you evaluate this situation?

 

Look, it really is up in the air. If this can work, and a lot of it depends on the response of the Turkish regime. Mr Erdogan is clearly a very dominant leader and he really needs to step up and work with Mr Öcalan and the starting point is to release him from prison. But also because I'm aware that a number of Kurdish politicians have been able to meet with Mr Öcalan and have talks with him in order to develop this peace process. This shows that it's very important and that these people must be allowed to work together in a more open way. That means Mr Öcalan being released from prison so that they can work on it and allow it to be taken up in a significant way. And it's a concern because Mr Erdogan has a track record like in 1993 when there was an earlier peace process developing. He really sunk that through his own actions. And I can understand that that's an ongoing concern, and I think that's where, again, I think Western governments have a key role to play because of Mr Erdogan's role. And we see this in different areas, Mr Erdogan often and to use one of our expressions, tries to walk both sides of the road. He pretends that he's trying to work for peace, or as he tried to do, pretends that he's with Palestine, but meanwhile he's working with Israel. Meanwhile, when he's with the peace process, he's not doing anything to advance the peace process, and he may even be undermining it. That's why Mr Ocalan and the people who are working with him, especially the politicians, must be strongly supported. And as time goes on, the Western countries will have to do more.

 

* Again Abdullah Öcalan sent a message to women on 8 March. How do you read his message to women at this point? Again, why is the leading role of women important in peace?

 

Mr Ocalan has often addressed the issue of women's rights, women's equality in his writings, and the whole slogan, Women, Life, Freedom, really comes from his really significant work in this area. But, and I'm sure Mr Ocalan would be the first to highlight not just his work, but the work of so many women, particularly from Rojava, which has inspired women and communities around the world, where you have women here who have been critical, who have played a critical role in defeating ISIS. You know, that was extraordinary, one of the most serious, destructive regimes that the world has faced for decades, and the Kurdish women in Rojava and surrounding areas played a clear role there. And Mr. Öcalan recognises that, because what they have shown is not only the defeat of ISIS, but also the breaking of many taboos about having women at the forefront of the armed struggle, about women being able to take leadership in these critical times, because often what you've seen, and Mr. Öcalan addresses this, is that women are not able to take leadership. Ocalan deals with this, is that women, when a society is in struggle or in a revolutionary situation, but women's rights have to wait, and this is being recognised more and more, that that's just wrong, that women have to be recognised as equal partners at every stage of the development of a society. Mr Öcalan has written about this.

 

 

It was wonderful to read his words on International Women's Day, 8 March, just recently. And International Women's Day has a beautiful history, a very similar history, in terms of the struggle and the courageous struggle of women, going back to the early 1900s when this International Women's Day was first developed. So the fact that Mr Ocalan wrote about International Women's Day and continued to write about International Women's Day celebrating the role of women is incredibly important because women will continue to play not only an important role for the Kurdish people in the region, but also it inspires so many people because you know you are breaking down the alcoholism that has been going on for a long time and giving this leadership that is just wonderful.

 

I forgot to mention the women's protection unit and the women's how important, like when you know the Rojava women are well known around the world, but that also means that we have to focus on the women's protection unit, the women's protection unit that has played a significant role in defeating ISIS, and will continue to play a leading role in how the path to peace is developed. Because there is no going back in terms of women's equality in this region, in terms of what Kurdish women have achieved, and the fact that it is so central to the struggle is an inspiration to people around the world.

 

*How was this whole process handled in your country and how did it resonate?

 

Look, certainly some people are aware of the very significant call that Mr Öcalan has made, and they are very impressed with the details, they have had the courage to recognise that a new way has to be found, so this is very significant for the whole way in which we all approach the struggle. But I have to be honest, not as many people as I would like are aware of it. Australians, because this story, even with Turkey, even with Erdogan, it's really in the news in this country. Rarely. You know, even on social media, you have to look for it to come up in your feed. So it's not as prominent as people like me would like it to be, but there's certainly a group here that's very inspired by Rojava, very inspired by Mr Öcalan. We have, I live in Sydney, in Australia, there's a Kurdish centre about 45 minutes from where I live and I've been there many times and I've learnt a lot about the Kurdish struggle because they're very welcoming. Every week there's events, cultural events, political events. So through this work more people, more Australians are learning about this struggle and what Mr Ocalan is working for. But I have to say again, not as many as I would like. I'd like it to be quicker and quicker because international solidarity is so important in these struggles. It's so important.

 

*Speaking of international solidarity, Italy, one of the centres of the international conspiracy, recently granted honorary citizenship to Abdullah Öcalan by the Municipality of Bologna. What is the historical significance of this?

 

It's very exciting that Italy has granted Mr Öcalan citizenship. It is very, very important. It's a wonderful form of international solidarity. So not only do we want people to march in the streets, sign petitions, have meetings, but we also want governments to stand with the Kurdish people. And Mr Ocalan is the leader of the Kurdish people, and to give him honorary citizenship is a very big step for the Kurdish struggle for the recognition of Kurdish demands, and especially these new developments, like the fact that Mr Ocalan has set out a way to take the peace process forward, to propose that the PKK be disbanded, obviously with full discussion with the PKK. But there are significant steps that don't happen easily when you are leading a movement, especially considering that he is in prison and it is not easy for him to communicate with people. So I think what Italy has done is wonderful and actually gives leadership to many other countries to also take a strong public stand with the Kurdish people and with Mr Öcalan.

 

* As we have mentioned, working conditions and the right to hope have not yet been put into practice, what steps should be taken as soon as possible for this process to move forward?

 

I think what is crucial is that Mr Ocalan must be released from prison, even if there hasn't been a peace process, if you have been in prison for more than two decades, under the circumstances in which he has been held, often in solitary confinement, it is clear that this has to stop, so this has to be a priority. There are also many other political prisoners, and Mr Öcalan has spoken about this many times, who need to be released, as well as Kurdish political prisoners who are imprisoned for really helping Mr Erdogan to stay in power, and then I think that's also what I think needs to be part of this peace process. The way forward is to look at how we build a democratic confederation, because the Kurdish people are spread across four countries in the region, and how we promote decentralisation, community-based governance really needs to be an important part of this discussion, and also of course ecological issues, and that's certainly what has struck a lot of people in this country, is the women and the women's struggle in Rojava, but also more generally the Kurdish struggle is really prioritising the ecological needs of our communities. So the question of governance, decentralisation and ecological issues are really crucial in terms of helping us to find a way forward. So I think we need to include that, that these issues need to be included, and it's a way to really show fantastic leadership for the whole world, because the world is in a very troubling situation. We haven't touched on what Mr Trump is doing to the world, understandably. But you know, there is so much damage being done by what the US is doing in the Middle East. You know, there's US bases all over the world, many of them in Turkey, and a lot of it is very worrying. So having this pathway to peace and recognizing the key role the communities must play in developing that Confederation is critical.