A vigil by the Democratic Kurdish Community in Switzerland has been taking place in front of the UN headquarters in Geneva since 25 January 2021. Every Wednesday, activists stage a protest in front of the United Nations building to demand the release of Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan. The action is carried out as part of the ‘Dem dema azadiye’ [Time for Freedom] campaign and is directed against the isolation of the Kurdish leader on the Turkish prison island of Imrali, the Turkish occupation attacks on Kurdistan, the massacres committed in Kurdish territories and the silence of the UN. Demonstratos call on international institutions to fulfill their responsibilities to secure Öcalan’s physical freedom.
During this week’s demonstration, which is held at a tent set up in Nations Square where the UN Office is located, activists denounced the aggravated isolation imposed on Abdullah Öcalan in Imrali Island Prison, and the ongoing military operations in Kurdistan as well as cross-border interventions.
The activists called upon international institutions—especially the United Nations—to assume responsibility, emphasizing that the isolation must be lifted and that the groundwork for a democratic solution must be established.
The weekly statement was read by Mustafa Eriş on behalf of Kurdish revolutionary youth organizations who commemorated those who lost their lives in Kurdistan and emphasized the importance of struggle. Noting that Öcalan has been held under severe isolation conditions since February 15, 1999, he stressed that the Imrali system constitutes an obstacle to a democratic resolution to the Kurdish question.
Eriş drew attention to Öcalan’s perspectives of “Democratic Modernity” and the “Third Way,” underlining the need to strengthen the line of a democratic society and peaceful solution against the ongoing crisis and conflict in the Middle East.
The Kurdish activist stressed that establishing a basis for dialogue and negotiation, instead of policies that deepen conflict among peoples, is a historical responsibility.
Eriş pointed out that the recent attacks on Rojava are a continuation of an international plan and aim at weakening the impact of the paradigm put forward by Öcalan. He called for national unity and democratic struggle against attempts to break the will of the Kurdish people.
Youth organizations stated that the isolation imposed on Öcalan must be lifted and the “right to hope” must be recognized in order for a possible peace process to move forward. They called on Turkey to take concrete steps toward peace and a democratic solution and urged the international community to become actively involved in the process.
The statement concluded with the slogan: “Freedom for Leader Öcalan, Status for Rojava.”
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