A commemoration was held at the graves of the brothers Mazlum and Delil Doğan in the province of Dersim (Tunceli). Both were co-founders of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). They were born in the 1950s in Elazığ, though their family originally came from Dersim. Mazlum Doğan, the older of the two brothers, in particular is considered a formative figure in the Kurdistan freedom movement.
Delil Doğan lost his life in 1980 during clashes with the Turkish military. In the same year, the Turkish military seized power in a coup. A wave of repression and persecution followed, and thousands of revolutionaries were arrested under the pretext of “restoring the welfare and unity of the country,” while many lost their organizational structures. Among those detained were founding members of the PKK, including Mazlum Doğan, who was imprisoned in Diyarbakır Prison, which would later become known as the “Hell of Amed.”
On Newroz in 1982, Mazlum Doğan lit three matches, placed them on the table in his prison cell, and took his own life in protest against brutal torture and repression. He left behind the message: “Surrender is betrayal; resistance brings victory.” Other prisoners followed his path, while others turned ongoing hunger strikes into death fasts. Their resistance generated significant support outside the prison walls and led to the PKK’s final decision to launch an armed struggle against the Turkish state on 15 August 1984.
The traditional commemoration held ahead of the Newroz celebrations took place in the village of Goman (Yaşaroğlu) in the district of Mazgirt. Representatives of several political parties as well as visitors attended the ceremony which began with a moment of silence.
DEM Party MP Ömer Öcalan stated that Mazlum Doğan and his comrades had “ignited the fire of existence in Kurdistan.” Despite numerous massacres and repression throughout the region’s history, he said, the Kurdish people continue to stand upright. He added that Doğan wrote history in prison and became a symbol through his resistance to oppression.
DEM Parti Dersim MP Ayten Kordu also emphasized the importance of this resistance. She recalled that during that period a determined resistance against policies of denial and repression had developed inside the prisons. “The values created by the prisoners, along with their resistance and determination in struggle, became a guiding force for the Kurdish people throughout Kurdistan,” Kordu said. After her speech, the commemoration concluded with participants laying carnations on the graves of the two brothers.
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