55 activists arrested at OPCW protest still in custody

In The Hague on Friday, 55 activists were taken into custody during a civil disobedience action in front of the headquarters of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). This was announced by the youth organizations TCŞ (Revolutionary Youth Movement) and TEKO-JIN (Movement of Combative Young Women) in a written statement on Saturday. According to the statement, those arrested are still in custody in various detention centers in the Netherlands.

The statement by the youth organizations said the following;

“Although we have repeatedly shown with evidence and witnesses that the Turkish army committed war crimes and used chemical weapons in Kurdistan, and requested an independent investigation there, the OPCW has not taken any steps. Of course, in the face of children murdered by chemical weapons, the youth of Kurdistan and their friends could not sit still and pretend that nothing had happened. The young activists who managed to enter and occupy the OPCW building in the most spectacular action in recent years were subjected to brutal and violent attacks by the police. We congratulate all the comrades who carried out this action and could not be silenced even by dozens of police officers, but shook the OPCW with their last voice and the slogan “Bijî Serok APO!”. We congratulate them for their strong stance and determined action and salute this great resistance that brought this action to its goal in the first place.

55 of our comrades are currently being held hostage in various detention centers in the Netherlands, ten of them are in custody in an injured condition. We all know that no attack can stand against an organized force. Our people in all parts of Europe, especially our patriotic youth, must take to the streets, stand behind their children, expose the silence of these institutions and respond to the attacks of the police. Those who resist for us are being murdered, arrested and silenced today. If they resisted yesterday, today it is our turn to resist. No power will be able to stop those whose hearts beat for the passion of freedom.

Today is the day to take to the streets and stand behind the youth and the struggle! Until all of our comrades are released and until the OPCW conducts an independent search, no one must rest!”