Kurds organize ‘Free Society’ conference in Britain

Kurds in Britain held a two-day Free Society conference to debate over the Democratic Confederalism paradigm introduced by Kurdish Leader Abdullah Öcalan against Capitalist Modernity.

The conference at the London Kurdish Community Center (KCC) building was attended 74 delegates who represent the Kurdish People’s Assemblies of Scotland, Wales and Britain, PJAK, Women’s Council, Civaka Azad and organizations from South Kurdistan and Rojava. KONGRA-GEL co-chair Remzi Kartal and KCDK-E co-chair Yüksel Koç also attended the conference online.

The conference started with a minute’s silence in memory of the martyrs of the revolution and struggle for democracy.

Translations were made in Turkish, English and other dialects of Kurdish at the conference which was held in Kurdish.

The Democratic Confederalism was debated under 8 headings, namely organization, culture, free equal life, right-justice, diplomacy, economy, self-defence and free citizenship.

PERIOD OF COMMUNE ASSEMBLIES IN BRITAIN

The delegates emphasized that the organization efforts of the Kurdistan peoples living in Britain should be rebuilt on a democratic basis. Emphasizing that communes, assemblies, academies, congresses and cooperatives should be established on the basis of the democratic society paradigm, the delegates also expressed self-criticism over the shortcomings.

The participants also stated that Kurdish Leader Abdullah Öcalan’s freedom is their main agenda.

They said that the free future of the peoples of Kurdistan and Palestine relies on the Democratic Confederalism, adding that one of the main pillars of construction is the internationalist struggle.

The delegates noted that primitive nationalists’ support for attacks against the guerrilla was a betrayal.

YÜKSEL KOÇ: WE ARE BUILDING RADICAL DEMOCRACY

KCDK-E Co-chair Yüksel Koç stated that they will build a free society by organizing a conscientious and moral society with the spirit of resistance.

Koç remarked that the radical democratic system will be established with people’s assemblies. He noted that the new system expresses freedom, and most importantly, it is a paradigm which promotes women’s emancipation.

REMZİ KARTAL: WE WILL BE ORGANIZED WITH THE LEADER’S PARADIGM

Speaking on the second day of the conference, KONGRA-GEL Co-Chair Remzi Kartal said,”We are going through a historic process. The Kurds have been fighting many states in the Middle East for a hundred years. Since Şêx Sait, Koçgiri, Agiri, Dersim and Mahabad, Mela Mustefa Berzani, Kurds have been in rebellion and under threat of genocide. How can we repel the attacks in four parts of Kurdistan? If the peoples living in all four parts organize themselves around the Leader’s paradigm and regain self-power, we can frustrate all these attacks. We showed the whole world how we resisted the capitalist system and how we achieved victory through the Rojava revolution. The democratic, gender-free, libertarian and ecological paradigm has been established in Rojava. This was realized with Leader Öcalan’s new paradigm.”

“We are building a system from the bottom up. Radical democracy is our perspective. We must organize with the Leader’s Paradigm for a free country,” he added.

After two days of discussions at the conference, the delegates debated over the decisions.

Some of the decisions agreed at the conference are as follows:

The Kurdish Culture Festival will be held once in Britain on a national basis.

Establishment of economic autonomy committee on the basis of reconstruction.

Preparatory work for cooperatives will be launched.

Making the Kurdish language as a GCSE (Elective course) in schools and establishing a commission for this.

The conference ended with the slogans after the closing speeches.