Louis Lemkow, a professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, knows all too well what racism, exclusion, erasure, and even annihilation on the basis of identity truly mean: twenty-one members of his family were murdered during the Second World War. This memory lives sharply within him, and today he openly rebels against Israel’s use of Holocaust remembrance as a tool to conceal its genocidal assault on Palestine. As someone who protested the Vietnam War in his youth and who described the role of women in building peace as “absolutely indispensable,” Lemkow spoke to ANF during his visit to Istanbul for the Peace and Democratic Society Conference. Stressing that the Turkish government must demonstrate genuine commitment to building peace, he delivered a clear message: “The first step in proving this sincerity is ensuring Abdullah Öcalan’s freedom.”
Lemkow described the process launched in Turkey for a peaceful and democratic solution to the Kurdish question as profoundly significant, emphasising that discussing peace while removing weapons from the equation was a positive and meaningful step. Yet he insisted that Ankara must show genuine intent in advancing this process. According to Lemkow, the clearest first step is securing the physical freedom of Abdullah Öcalan, whom he described as the principal negotiator, and implementing the long-awaited legal reforms without delay. He underlined that keeping Öcalan in isolation and imprisonment is fundamentally incompatible with the nature of any negotiation process.
Education and the language we use are essential for socialising peace
Lemkow emphasised that one of the most crucial elements in embedding peace within society is education, noting that this is unfortunately not how the education system in Turkey is operated. He stressed the importance of teaching children a peaceful, rather than polarising, outlook from an early age. Lemkow said, “Everything begins with education. That is why children must be introduced to a peaceful perspective from a very young age.” He also underlined the importance of language, pointing out that societies must avoid terminology that marginalises or demonises others. Using Israel as an example, Lemkow recalled how the Israeli state, while carrying out a genocide against Palestine, even instrumentalises Holocaust memory as a tool of manipulation in order to justify itself.
The discourse of “terrorism” now amounts to a human rights violation
Lemkow, who is Jewish and lost 21 members of his family in Auschwitz during the Holocaust, said: “Israel’s prime minister now advances the argument that, ‘We did not survive the Holocaust, and therefore we must do this to Palestine in order to survive today.’ Using this claim, he labels Palestinians, along with peace activists attempting to break the blockade by sea, and virtually anyone who challenges Israel’s actions, as ‘terrorists’. But what Israel is carrying out is state terrorism, and it is committing a crime of genocide against the Palestinian people. Branding people as ‘terrorists’ is, in reality, a manipulation technique commonly used by states. In Turkey, for example, the government and the state attempted to portray lawyers defending Kurdish activists as ‘terrorists’. The same tactic was used against journalists reporting on the Kurdish issue. This is unacceptable. Russia follows a similar pattern, designating activists, lawyers, and journalists as ‘terrorists’. At this stage, the entire discourse of ‘terrorism’ has itself become a human rights violation, and more people are beginning to recognise these manipulations. Even in Israel, many Jewish citizens have come to see what is happening. Most initially supported the government, but that has shifted. Many Israelis no longer believe the state’s actions are justified and have adopted a critical, even oppositional stance.”
There is a clear parallel between what Palestinians and Kurds have lived through
Lemkow noted that he sees a strong resemblance between the experiences of Palestinians and Kurds. Lemkow also added: “After the First World War, European imperialism subjected both peoples to similar projects. Kurds were carved up, and Palestine was handed over to Israeli Zionism. In that sense, there is a clear parallel. Today, Turkey has at least initiated a process regarding the Kurdish question, but we cannot say the same for Israel and Palestine. There is no short-term prospect for peace, because Israel has shut the door to that possibility, and, as a result, Palestinians have come to hate Israelis. An entrenched sense of enmity has formed: Israelis now hate Palestinians, Palestinians hate Israelis, and repairing that mutual perception of hostility, unfortunately, takes many long years.”
The government in Turkey must also be willing to take risks
Lemkow noted that the road to peace is always difficult and complex, recalling that Catalonia has struggled with similar challenges for years. He pointed to the 2017 independence referendum, which was met with heavy police intervention, and to the mass arrests of Catalan politicians, an episode he compared to developments in Turkey. A general amnesty was issued only after a change of government in Spain. He underlined that the newly elected Spanish government also took a significant political risk in making this decision yet chose to proceed regardless. Lemkow said: “Turkey must take risks as well and show seriousness towards the process. Abdullah Öcalan must be granted the Right to Hope and must be free; Kurdish rights must be recognised within a constitutional framework, political prisoners must be released, and the necessary legal reforms must be implemented. This is a difficult path, but no matter what happens, we must not lose hope in peace.”
Peace processes without women have ended in disaster
Lemkow also said: “There is a need for deep change across the world. I agree with Abdullah Öcalan’s vision of a confederal, commune-based form of socialism. These are, of course, long-term debates. In Catalonia, we have spent many years working on freedom, independence, and ultimately the right to self-determination. From there, we move forward through different methods. That is why I cannot claim there is a single formula or definitive solution. What I can say is this: women are absolutely essential to building peace. In fact, their role is indispensable. In our party in Catalonia, we have a strict rule of equality in every unit, every field, and every level, meaning a 50/50 representation of women and men. I always repeat it: without women, there is no peace. Research on earlier peace processes around the world makes this perfectly clear. Peace efforts that excluded women overwhelmingly failed, many ended in complete disaster. Precisely for this reason, women must be at the forefront of peace-building. And not only women; artists and intellectuals also have a vital role to play.”