The public gathering was organized by the Democratic Institutions Platform in a hall in the Şehitkamil district of Antep (Dîlok).
Çetin Arkaş attended the meeting along with Ayla Akat Ata from the Freedom Women’s Movement (Tevgera Jinên Azad–TJA) and Raziye Öztürk, a member of the Asrın Law Office.
Throughout the meeting, participants frequently chanted slogans such as “Bijî Serok Apo” (Long live Leader Apo), “Greetings, greetings, a thousand greetings to Imralı” (Greetings, greetings, a thousand greetings to Imralı), “Jin, jiyan, azadî” (Woman, life, freedom), and “Bijî berxwedana zindanan” (Long live the resistance of the prisons).
Raziye Ozturk: The parties must be equal in conducting the process
Raziye Ozturk, a member of the Asrın Law Office, began her remarks by conveying the greetings of Abdullah Öcalan and said: “Abdullah Öcalan is a leader whose role finds a collective reflection among the Kurdish people. Therefore, in carrying out this process, the parties must be on equal footing.”
Ozturk added: “For this reason, we also attach great importance to Mr. Öcalan’s physical freedom and his ability to work under free conditions. Just as the state side can go and consult with everyone and hold meetings, Mr. Öcalan must also be able to meet with other counterparts and reach out to them.”
Ayla Akat Ata: We are the hope
Ayla Akat Ata from the TJA began her remarks by saying, “Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan has been part of this process since 1993,” and continued: “He held these talks with the state, assessed them, and knows their outcomes. From the declaration of 27 February to today, the will he has put forward is the accumulated knowledge of this entire process. The President is acting on the basis of this knowledge. Then we, too, must build an organization that corresponds to this knowledge.”
Akat Ata referred to the public gatherings held following Abdullah Öcalan’s call on 27 February and said: “If we are speaking of a democratic solution, the construction of a democratic society, and peace, then we must give voice to his words.”
She concluded her speech by saying: “We will trust ourselves. Hope lies with us; we are the hope. Hope is precisely our people who have filled these halls today.”
Arkaş: Some things must change
Çetin Arkaş emphasized that the physical freedom of Abdullah Öcalan, who he described as the main interlocutor of the process, must be ensured and that his working conditions must be improved.
Arkaş said: “Abdullah Öcalan is someone who voices what he believes in under the most difficult conditions. He has a very strong sense of history and is an intelligent person who knows exactly what he is doing. I say this with great confidence: Abdullah Öcalan is someone who does not deceive and cannot be deceived. We have seen and experienced this many times throughout history. If an understanding develops that sees the existence of the Kurdish people as a matter of dignity, we are ready to embrace them. We will not forget the past in order to hold on to resentment, but so that it is never lived again.”
Arkaş added: “We are being told about integration, yet trustee appointments continue, our friends remain captive in prisons, and the isolation on the island has not been lifted. Some things must change. Kurdish–Turkish relations over the past century have been wounded and problematic. Cultural suffering and economic losses have been experienced. If we come to know one another, we can bring about peace.”
We will make peace by understanding one another
Arkaş said that both Kurds and Turks had suffered heavy losses throughout the war period and stressed that peace must now be achieved to prevent further losses.
Çetin Arkaş said: “We will make peace by understanding one another; this process cannot move in a healthy direction through unilateral impositions. We want to stress this once again. Both sides must confront the truth.”