AMED - Listening to Abdullah Öcalan's historic call in Sheikh Said Square, "Mr Öcalan has taken the first step, this is not an end but a beginning. This message is for everyone. The government has to do its part from now on," says Kasım Karataş, who was imprisoned for 33 years.
The Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party İmralı Delegation shared the historic call of PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan with the public in Istanbul. Among those who listened to the call read by Ahmet Türk and Pervin Bulan at Sheikh Said Square in Amed (Diyarbakır) was Kasım Karataş from Dîlok (Antep). Karateş was imprisoned for 33 years. He was detained in Izmir in 1991 and sentenced to life imprisonment by the State Security Court (DGM) for "disrupting the unity and integrity of the state". Karataş was released on 2 February 2024 after 33 years of imprisonment.
Karataş evaluated the historical call to Mezopotamya Agency (MA) in Sheikh Said Square and said that it is not history to witness a statement of history a century later in the place where Sheikh Said and his frineds were executed. Karataş said, "Sheikh Said and his friends were executed in this square not because they wanted a war but as the pioneers of the Kurdish struggle for a free life. Our people have an emotional bong with the PKK, this is a fact. It showed itself most clearly in the outpouring of emotion in this square. Every war has a peace. Every conflict has a result. The important thing is to do this without losing our own values and without turning our backs on the values of our people. One of the most important leaders of history is Mr Öcalan. When Öcalan does something, we can be sure that he will never take a step that will lead to the loss of values. He has shown this with his practices in 50 years of struggle. Öcalan has taken important steps before."
Reminding that PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan dissolved the PKK in 2002, Karataş said, "He gave the state a chance and dissolved the PKK at that time. But because the state did not take the steps it should have taken, the clashes resumed in 2004 and the PKK re-emerged. The prevention of such conflicts once again will be possible with the politics and the support of the people. Our people have rightly experienced a discharge of emotion, but logic should be in front of emotion. These problems cannot be solved with emotion."
'THE WAY TO STOP THE BLOOD IS PEACE'
Pointing out that the Palestinian people have lost their gains due to inadequate leadership, Karataş stressed, "Palestinian lands are now a handful of Palestinian lands. This happened because the problem was not approached in the direction of a solution. Kurds have gains in the 21st century and they need to be protected. Today, both the sate and the Kurds want to protect their values. In 2013, some cliques blocked the negotiations. They treated it as if 'Kurds spoilt the process', but Kurds have never been the spoilers. Mr Ocalan is an important leader. He is an important actor not only for Kurds but for the whole Middle East. Today his ideas are being discussed in the world. If Mr Ocalan speaks, blood will not flow in the Middle East. It is necessary to stop this bloodshed. The way to this is peace."
'MESSAGE IS FOR EVERYONE'
Underlining that the message given by PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan is not only directed towards Kurds, Karataş said, "This message is also directed towards the Turkish people. A message was given to the peoples of the Middle East. The message given today should be taken into consideration by the new regime established in Iran, Iraq and Syria. Kurds are the most important power in all 4 states. Mr Öcalan has taken the first step, this is not an end but a beginning. This message is for everyone. The government has to do its part from now on. They have to guarantee the rights of Kurds. A new government may come to power and exhibit practices that will nullify these steps taken. To prevent this from happening, the government must immediately provide constitutional guarantees. These processes do not arise easily. Such opportunities do not come up once in a hundred years. Thousands of people lost their lives, were exiled, villages were burnt. The state has to take steps to prevent this from happening. Constitutional assurance is a must. Giving the message in Şêx Seîd Square today means that the dreams of Şêx Seîd and his friends have been realised. Our people can be sure of this; today is the sum total of the struggle, labour and value, the important thing is to take it to the end. From now on, everyone has more duties. Most of all, Turkish mothers should support this step in order to prevent new sufferings."
MA / Emrullah Acar