NOW IS THE TIME

The PKK Council of Leaders said that the state had taken no steps on the peace plan presented
by Ocalan and the PKK in the nearly two years since PKK President Abdullah Ocalan had fallen
captive, and called the people to political uprising.

Feb 6, 2001
Ozgur Politica    (Ozgur Politica is a pro PKK punblication in Turkish)
(Translated Text

The PKK Council of Leader called for the people to stand up in political uprisings in these days
approaching the second anniversary of the day PKK President Abdullah Ocalan was handed over to Turkey
in Kenya on February 15, 1999 as the result of an international conspiracy.

The Council of Leaders issued a statement this weekend saying that the PKK had stopped their
weapons, withdrawn from the borders, and decided on the "Peace Strategy" at the PKK 7th Congress, but
that Turkey and the regional powers had taken approaches to sabotage what they intended to develop.

The statement noted that the second anniversary of the February 15, 1999 plot was approaching, and
that in response to the struggle they were engaging in aimed at democratization in Turkey and solving the
Kurdish problem on the basis of a free union, the regressive, fascist, and war-profiteering forces were
battling to make the process unsuccessful.

The statement called attention to the fact that these forces had increased their assaults recently. It noted
that they would continue to develop the comprehensive and clear new process laid out by PKK
President Abdullah Ocalan on Imrali, adding that the need for the forces of democracy to increase their
struggle had preserved its place on the agenda.

Provocations for war endanger democratization

The statement said that both the PKK and Turkey were being instigated to start up the war again,
adding, "The efforts of the PUK, being supported by international and regional powers, is the most striking
example of this." The statement stressed the following: "The PUK unceasingly continued its efforts
to pull Turkey into a war with the PKK in South Kurdistan [Iraqi Kurdistan]. These efforts have made
ground along the lines indicated by the international conspiratorial forces with the contribution of forces
with a certain influence in the state and government, and the democratic solution process has fallen into
danger. The increasing assaults by the forces opposed to democracy in Turkey and the complete
blockage of the democracy process means coming to the point of starting a war process the ends of which
cannot be predicted."

Our demands are being exploited

The statement noted that "The PKK's insistence on peace and a democratic solution continues to be
exploited by the regressive forces" and, calling for the people to initiate political uprisings, continued to say
the following: "It has become necessary at this point to advance the democratic solution process and for
multi-dimensional resistance from the democratic forces. The intensifying assaults of the regressive
fascist forces can be overcome by a resistance emphasizing political struggle. The time has come for
the democratic forces to see this option and direct themselves towards an comprehensive resistance.
Alongside the people's political uprisings, we will use our legitimate right to self defense and give response
to assaults against our struggle on the military field. Along with this, our preference will be for advancing
along the path for a democratic solution by solving problems in an environment of political dialogue and
agreement."

Political uprising

The section of the statement entitled "Call to the people of Kurdistan" included explanation of the
concept of political uprising and by whom, why, how, and with whom this would be realized. The statement
recalled that the PKK had taken steps such as withdrawing from Turkey's borders, sending the peace
groups, and pulling it to the political dimension, but that no response had yet been given to these steps
by the PKK.

The statement recalled that the conditions that the PKK President was staying in were gradually
deteriorating, adding the following: "The increasingly severe procedures against President Apo have also
been reflected in the solution to the Kurdish question. Policies of denial and annihilation continue. The state
has taken absolutely no step to recognize the basic freedoms of our people, such as to TV, radio, and
education in their own language. The subject of joining the EU has become blocked at the point of the
rights and freedoms of our people. Despite all the efforts of our leadership, assaults against our people
and our guerrilla forces have not ended. President Apo has insisted on peace, political dialogue, and
agreement in spite of all these. But the increasing assaults of the regressive, fascist and
war-profiteering forces that are influential in the state are pushing the limits of forbearance and have
left our party and our people face-to-face with the necessity to intensify resistance. The only path to
obtain our basic rights and freedoms created by the Democratic Republic is to intensify our revolutionary
resistance. The time has come for the Kurdish people to intensify the democratic resistance. Our party has
reorganized itself and achieved the capability of being the vanguard in this resistance.

"We must develop our uprisings to stand up for President Apo on the February 15 anniversary and to
assure that he attains his freedom and a solution of the Kurdish question within democracy. Our people
must start political activities everywhere. Actions such as demonstrations, marches, turning out lights,
pulling down shop shutters, boycotting school classes, leaving work, and fasting on February 15
must be initiated in a broad and continuous uprising movement. The state's repression , arrests, and
torture in response to the uprising actions must be resisted. These repressions must be seen as an
inescapable sacrifice of the struggle in an environment in which President Apo is in prison and
subjected to such practices, and every type of sacrifice called for by the uprising activities must be
risked. We are calling courageous Kurdish youths, the lofty Kurdish woman who is ready for every type of
sacrifice for freedom, our beloved children, and every segment of our people to take place in uprising
activities."

Call to officials

In the section of the statement entitled "To state administrators of common sense," it noted that
Turkey's development is tied to democratization. It stressed that the process begun by Ocalan's call on
August 2, 1999 that stopped the war was a chance to create a democratic Turkey, and made the
following call: "The hand of peace extended by our President and our party must find positive response.
As a requirement of this, the stances imposing war must be abandoned, policies of denial and annihilation
must be overcome, and the basic freedoms of the Kurdish people must be recognized. Priority must be
given to solving all problems in peace, political dialogue, and agreement, without falling for the
incitements by the forces that are Turkey's enemies to once again begin the war. A role for the Kurds in
which they strengthen rather than weaken Turkey must thus be secured."

The MHP is playing with fire

The statement stressed in its section entitled "To the democratic forces of Turkey" that these forces had
remained weak in answering the process, and that the regressive forces in question had taken
advantage of the weakness of the democratic forces at the end of 2000 to increase their assaults. The
statement said that a regressive-fascist party like the MHP had used the opportunities of being in power
to coordinate the assaults to crush the struggle for democracy, and continued to say, "And as the
position of this party strengthens, it is aiming at decisively crushing the democracy movement with
the support of the other regressive forces." The statement made the following call to the democratic
forces: "Waiting any longer will push Turkey into disaster and darken the future of our peoples. In
order to not give a chance to this, democratic forces must take action on the highest level and bring about
the democratic actions of the broad masses."

Let the US change its stance

The PKK Council of Leaders' statement also made a call to the public of the international community,
particularly in the US and EU countries. The statement recalled that the policies followed by
international forces on the 20th century were the reason that the Kurdish question had not been solved
and underscored that the US and EU countries had played roles in PKK President Abdullah Ocalan falling
captive. The statement called for these countries to call a halt to this direction that was completely
negative for the Kurds at this point, and expressed the following views: "The new US administration
must, in addition to reversing the negative aspects of the former administration, take responsible action for
the international community to play a role in a solution to the Kurdish problem. It must thus chose
the path of answering for the crimes committed against our people. In the opposite case, serious
problems will be experienced in a region so sensitive as the Middle East and this will cause serious damage
to the interests of the international community."
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The Kurdistan Observer
www.kurdistanobserver.com