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News Center- On October 10, 2023, an international campaign titled, “Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan, political solution to the Kurdish issue” was launched and 74 press conferences demanding the freedom for Abdullah Öcalan were held around the world. In an interview with NuJINHA, Zübeyde Zümrüt, Co-chair of the European Kurdish Democratic Societies Congress (KCDK-E), spoke about the campaign and protests for freedom of Abdullah Öcalan.

Recalling the previous campaigns and protests demanding freedom for Abdullah Öcalan, Zübeyde Zümrüt said, “The ‘Dem Dema Azadi (English: Time to Ensure Freedom)’ was launched. After this campaign, the Kurdish people thought that something else should be done. Therefore, a campaign was launched on October 10, 2023 because October 10 marks the beginning of the conspiracy (against Abdullah Öcalan). No news has been received from our leader for three years; he has not been allowed to see his lawyers and family members. Everyone knows how the isolation has been aggravated but no statement has been issued about this.”

 ‘Friends are concerned about the leader’s freedom’

Speaking about how the campaign launched on October 10, she said, “The previous campaigns were, of course, very important. Many people and organizations expressed their support for the campaign. The presidents of unions, writers, academics, journalists, philosophers and many more have supported the current campaign led by the friends of our leader. Today, not only the Kurds but also our friends are concerned about the leader’s freedom and breaking the isolation imposed on him.”

A person having a broad paradigm has been held hostage in Imrali Prison for 25 years and this is unacceptable, Zübeyde Zümrüt said. “The campaign is an international campaign planned to be launched in 74 places, but it was launched in 100 places. The campaign is spreading all around the world.”

‘The system in Imrali is an uncommon system in the world’

Zübeyde Zümrüt indicated that the system in İmrali is an uncommon system in the world. “The international conspiracy against our leader was launched by Turkey with the support of international powers and NATO. Our leader has been struggling for 25 years. Today, our friends lead the campaign. They are the friends of the Kurdish people.”

‘The isolation should be broken now, this is obvious’

People, who think globally, know very well that the solution to the wars, political crisis and chaos in the Middle East cannot be achieved without Öcalan, Zübeyde Zümrüt emphasized.

“The Kurdish issue has a long history. The reasons why a solution has not been developed for the Kurdish issue and the demands and status of the Kurds cannot be accepted are obviously known. The political genocidal policies carried out by fascism and nationalism against the Kurds in Turkey show that the isolation is not imposed only on our leader but also on humanity. The isolation should be broken now, this is obvious. The isolation, which has no legal basis in Turkey, is being used against the Kurds. The resistance against the isolation will continue, but it is insufficient. More brutal fascist policies are implemented against the people. This campaign is actually the beginning. The campaign will continue and we will keep taking to the streets until we receive news from our leader, until the isolation is broken and the freedom of our leader is achieved.”

Demonstration in Cologne on February 17

February 15 is a dark day for the Kurds, Zübeyde Zümrüt said. “The resistance of the Kurdish people, young people and women frustrated this conspiracy in 1999. The international conspiracy failed. We will hold a demonstration in Cologne on February 17. The Kurdish people defend their leader and their own will. There are more than three million Kurds in Europe. We call on the Kurdish people and their friends to participate in the demonstration to break the isolation and demand a political solution to the Kurdish issue. Many marches will be held in England and Scandinavian countries.”

Emphasizing that women lead the protests, Zübeyde Zümrüt said: “The Kurdish women's movement has a positive impact on women around the world. International women’s organizations want to learn from our experiences to implement them in their countries. Women and young people play a leading role in the protests demanding freedom for Abdullah Öcalan. On February 15, Kurdish young people will hold marches. Kurdish women will hold and lead protests. We will hold a demonstration in Cologne with the participation of millions. In addition, we will hold many activities and conferences.”