TJK-E: “Resist, Organize, Live Free!”

The European Kurdish Women’s Movement (TJK-E) issued a written statement to mark 8 March, International Working Women’s Day.

The statement included the following remarks:

“Women’s Freedom Struggle, which developed as the most radical revolution against the 5,000 year-old male-dominated society and its final stage, capitalist modernity, has been the voice of oppressive resistance now as it was in the past. With respect and appreciation, we remember all revolutionary women who died as martyrs in the women’s liberation movement. We promise to realize the world the martys, Rosa, Sara, Xavin, wanted to create, and we celebrate the 8 March of all women.”

Massacres increased

The statement underlined that “the massacres of women by men continued for thousands of years,” and added: “Throughout history, women have been silenced, subjected to various forms of brutality, rape, and massacres. Since the male-dominated society sees its end in the women’s struggle, it continues to target women and destroy the ideals developed by women today, as it did yesterday. The capitalist system was the last stage of the male-dominated system. The so-called life that modernity gives, full of false liberties, promotes slavery, exploitation, and violence in its essence. Because of the fear of women’s liberation, revolt, and change, the male-dominated system deepens its policies of murder on women in all respects.

Women’s resistance to these murder policies has occurred throughout history. The reality of a woman who refuses to accept a life as a slave, refuses to surrender to the dominant system, and opposes it. Around the world, women are mounting a significant resistance and struggle against rising patriarchy, sexism, fascism, militarism, labour exploitation, and conservatism. Women are leading and organizing social movements in the twenty-first century. This scenario has reached critical proportions across the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, and particularly in Kurdistan. The women’s movement is becoming more radical by the day, and it is battling against all people and institutions that create, protect, and expand slavery.”

‘Kurdish women have become an inspiration for many’

The statement continued: “With the struggle we are waging today, we, Kurdish women, are attempting to achieve the dreams of all women who have resisted from the past to the present. The Kurdish women’s freedom movement has succeeded in motivating women all over the world today. Kurdish women have written a new chapter in the history of women’s liberation struggle with their distinctive and autonomous organization, self-defence, freedom of consciousness, and democratic system. Leader Apo [Abdullah Ocalan] is the mastermind behind this struggle. Leader Apo saw the social imbalance between men and women and deciphered the codes of enslavement. He replied to the male-dominated system’s idea of ‘shoot the women first’ by resolving to ‘save the women first.’ He built his social revolution on women’s liberation. Today, we are in a historical time in which we are closer to social freedom than ever before. As the European Kurdish Women’s Movement, we greet 8 March with this awareness and proclaim, “Leader Apo’s freedom is our freedom.”

As the European Kurdish Women’s Campaign, ‘Against Women’s Crime,’ enters its second year, we are carrying out our resistance and battle on the basis of the ‘Time to Defend Free Women and Society’ movement. ‘Resist, Organize, and Live Freely!’ is the slogan with which we want to greet all women. This year, at the 8 March activities and events, we will address the massacres of women, the reality of women political prisoners who face torture and massacres in prisons, the ecological concerns that endanger the entire world, labour exploitation, and challenges faced by women, particularly male violence. We will bring attention to ourselves. Solutions to these challenges will emerge through organized power, self-defence, and women’s collective struggle.”

TJK-E stated that it will welcome 8 March with actions and events with a different agenda in each country and added: “Women will take action in Germany to protest the massacre of women in Shengal and Afrin. While thousands of Yazidi women remain missing, Afrin women are exposed to a range of attacks, kidnappings, violence, and massacres by gangs linked with the invading fascist AKP-MHP administration. The dictator Erdogan’s command is committing a crime against humanity in front of the entire world. Our fight will not end until tyrant Erdogan is prosecuted and sentenced. On 8 March, we will be the voice of hundreds of Yazidi women who are still missing! We will put an end to the slaughter of women in Afrin! And we will proclaim that the only response to these women’s murder policies is a collective fight, self-defence, and women’s organization!”

In France, TJK-E will be “on the front lines against the growing political murders of women who participate in women’s liberation fight, particularly the Paris massacre. The male-dominated system has no hesitation about murdering women who consider a danger. Sara, Rojbin, Ronahi, Sêvê Demir, Asya Yüksel, Zehra Berkel, Seda Feysel El-Hermez, and Deniz Poyraz were all brutally killed. Despite the fact that the perpetrators of these atrocities are known, these massacres remain unresolved. These massacres were carried out on the orders of the tyrant Erdogan, in full view of the entire world. And once again, we declare that our battle will not end until dictator Erdogan is prosecuted and punished. We will bring the perpetrators to justice! And we will declare that the only response to these women’s murder policies is collective fighting, self-defence, and women’s organization!

We will be in Switzerland fighting the global ecological disaster, particularly in Kurdistan. Every day, the world we live in dies a little more. The cause for this is the male-dominated system’s ravenous profit avarice and greed. Women are raising the loudest voice in this age of finance capital, which is based solely on consumption, poisons the soil, air, and water, and threatens extinction.

We will be on the front lines in Belgium, fighting against torture and persecution in Turkey’s prisons. Political genocide operations penalize women who have been subjected to state-inflicted violence and terrorism. Aysel Tuğluk, Figen Yüksekdağ, Gültan Kışanak, Leyla Güven, and thousands of other women have been attacked, persecuted, and imprisoned for years because of their work and organized identities. Dozens of political prisoners are on the edge of death as a result of health issues in the prisons. The assassination of Garibe Gezer was the pinnacle of these massacre policies. On 8 March we will be the voice of thousands of women imprisoned unjustly and illegally in prisons!

In the Netherlands, we will speak out against the use of chemical weapons in Kurdistan in front of the entire world! The fascist AKP-MHP administration, which has been beaten by the guerrilla war of the Free Kurdistan movement, wishes to accomplish results through the use of chemical weapons. While the use of chemical weapons is prohibited throughout the world, it is intolerable that international institutions, such as the OPCW, keep silent in the face of the fascist Turkish state’s continuous use of chemical weapons. Silence means collaboration in the massacre. On 8 March we will once again raise our voices in opposition to the use of chemical weapons! We will mobilize everyone to take action and accept responsibility!

We will take to the streets fighting against the exploitation of women’s labour throughout the Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland! Especially during the pandemic process, which still continues to affect all over the world, women have been impoverished, forced to stay in their homes, domestic labour has been rendered worthless, and they have become dependent on men and the state. Women’s labour has become invisible as a result of women’s murder policies that have been in place for thousands of years.

In England, we will be fighting the rising male violence in the fields! In 2021, violence against women has escalated tremendously. But just mentioning it is insufficient. The rise in violence in the public and private domains has become more severe.”

Actions promoted between 1 and 8 March

TJK-E said that they will organise “actions and events in dozens of European cities between 1 and 8 March. Panels, seminars, information stands, street events, movie screenings, music performances, and women’s gathering nights will also be held during the program. On 8 March, Kurdish women across Germany, France, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, England, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland, as well as Canada, Cyprus, and Australia will defend freedom and strengthen resistance to fascism and genocide. As the European Kurdish Women’s Movement, we say that the twenty-first century will be the century of women! We fight femicide on behalf of free women and free societies! We are holding our rage against the male-dominated system’s ugliness and cruelty, and we are holding them accountable!

Between 1 and 8 March we will urge people to take part in the events and activities that will be carried out with the slogan “Resist, Organize, Live Free!”