Artists from Sulaymaniyah support campaign to remove the PKK from list of terrorist organisations

The campaign launched by the “International Justice for Kurds Initiative” to remove the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), from the Council of Europe and the United States list of terrorist organisations has been going on since 13 November.

The campaign continues at the international level. Thousands of well-known people from 30 countries supported the campaign by signing the petition. Many academics, artists, parliamentarians, filmmakers, political leaders, writers and activists participated in the campaign.

Within the framework of the campaign, artists from Sulaymaniyah also declared that they supported the campaign and called on anyone to sign. The artists underlined that the PKK is carrying out a legitimate resistance for the Kurdish people.

Ibrahim Ahmet, a well-known artist in Sulaymaniyah, spoke to Rojnews about the campaign. Ahmet said: “A movement that fights nationally for its people cannot be labelled as terrorist. The PKK is very clearly in favour of peace and freedom. The leader of the PKK is imprisoned for defending peace and freedom. That’s why we support the campaign to remove the PKK from the terrorist list.”

Ahmet called on Kurdish artists and intellectuals to join the campaign and added: “The PKK is an honourable resistance force of the Kurdish people, it is a movement that defends the national rights and the existence of the Kurdish people against those who suck the blood of the Kurdish people. That’s why we all need to support this campaign.”

Artist Heme Eli Xan also said: “The Kurdish people have always lived as a colony of other states. That’s why I find this campaign very important.”

Artists Dr. Tahir Muhammed also said that this campaign concerns the Kurdish people living all over Kurdistan and added: “They (the PKK) are revolutionaries. They are fighting against dictatorship and occupation. That’s why every Kurd, whether a writer, a poet, or someone who hasn’t studied, should support this campaign. Turkey is constantly making different attempts to prevent the PKK from being removed from the list of terrorist organisations.”