A-Infos (en) France, UCL AL #345 - International, Kurdish Movement: Repression does not weaken (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

A little over a year ago, an attack targeted the Kurdish community in 
Paris. Following this attack, peaceful demonstrations were severely 
repressed, a now usual reaction from the French state, without 
distinction or compassion. Since then, a sneaky repression has been at 
work against Kurdish activists in France and in other countries of the 
European Union. ---- The repression of the political ideas of the 
Kurdish movement has a history in France. Ten years after the 
assassination of Fidan Dogan, Sakine Cansiz and Leyla Söylemez, members 
of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in Paris, defense secrecy has 
still not been lifted despite numerous requests made by the Kurdish 
community, but also by French and European political leaders. A 
situation which reveals the French position.

Judicial relentlessness and politicized justice
In 2021 and 2022, as part of the investigation of the accused on March 
23, 2021 1, more than 800 people were questioned by the DGSI and eleven 
of them were convicted for belonging to the PKK. The Democratic Council 
of Kurdistan of France condemned this decision motivated by political 
and not legal considerations.

The terrorist character is only retained when it comes to repressing the 
Kurds. When it comes to prosecuting the crimes committed against them, 
French justice does not retain this qualification, as shown by the 
refusal of the anti-terrorism prosecution to take up the case of the 
attack perpetrated at the CDK-F which killed three Kurdish activists on 
December 23, 2022. Many Kurdish activists have suffered this 
relentlessness in recent years: repeated summons by the authorities, 
freezing of bank assets, wiretapping, etc.

Double speech
The French state is playing a double game, organizing this repression 
and posing as diplomatic support for the Kurdish cause. After Macron's 
empty speeches following the attack of December 23, 2022 and the media 
imbroglio that followed, it is on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that 
the government is relying to condemn Turkey a little and provide a 
semblance of support for the Autonomous Administration of North and East 
Syria.

Lately, it is Jean-Michel Blanquer, former minister, who plays 
ambassador. He traveled to Syrian Kurdistan in November 2023 to deliver 
a message of support from Macron to the leaders of the autonomous region 
(in particular to the leader of the Syrian Democratic Forces). No 
journalists on site were informed of his visit. No press release has 
been written. This trip, which is intended to be "a snub" to Erdogan, 
was kept secret until the return of the former minister, a rather 
discreet provocation, officially "unrecognized" by the Élysée. A report 
would have been commissioned by Macron, it remains to be seen whether it 
will be made public as France's support for the Syrian Kurds seems timid.

At the same time, Macron received the president of the autonomous region 
of Iraqi Kurdistan. "The two leaders shared their analysis of the 
situation in the Near and Middle East," said the presidency press 
release. However, no details were communicated. Usual spin as Erdogan 
announced that he would "continue to intensify" airstrikes in Syria and 
Iraq against the PKK, an organization that Ankara and its Western allies 
consider "terrorist".

The war led by Erdogan is, however, reminiscent of the Russian strategy 
against Ukraine, which has been much more criticized. In both cases, the 
victim pretext is identical to impose on the international community a 
policy of fait accompli. Erdogan's military strategy is similar to that 
of Putin: destroy all existing civilian infrastructure with aviation, 
drones and artillery, not just military positions.

Demonstration for justice and truth for the triple assassination of 
January 9, 2013.
UCL
No condemnation from the French state or other Western powers: Turkey is 
a member of NATO, it has made itself indispensable in the Ukrainian 
conflict and continues its blackmail of migrants to silence its 
detractors. Despite his desire to show support for the Kurdish cause, 
Macron is no longer credible since the abandonment of the FDS to Turkish 
forces in 2019. The German specificity

No other EU state is taking such harsh measures against the Kurdish 
movement as Germany, with the aim of maintaining German-Turkish 
relations. To justify this situation, reference is most often made to 
the PKK's battles against the Turkish army. The procedures aim to 
demonstrate that the person concerned is a member of the PKK. Prison 
sentences range up to three years, like the recent verdict in France.

Solitary confinement is sometimes ordered, again not unlike the measures 
taken against a French internationalist (case of the accused of 8/12). 
Those subsequently released are subject to very strict conditions: 
judicial control and ban on any political activity. The consequences are 
more serious for Kurds who do not have German nationality: they risk 
expulsion or rejection of their asylum application.

More than thirty symbols are now classified as "PKK replacement 
symbols". Anyone who displays them in public spaces is liable to a fine 
of 1000 euros. Searches of supporters in search of these symbols are 
common. However, in 1996, PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan announced on 
television his unconditional renunciation of violence in Germany after a 
meeting with Senator Heinrich Lummer, after which the intensity of the 
persecution had diminished.

But Turkish pressure is strong.
Only Switzerland seems to constitute an exception: no form of 
criminalization vis-à-vis the Kurdish cause. Recently in Belgium, the 
Court of Cassation ruled that the PKK was not a terrorist organization, 
showing the way to other EU powers.

Germany, France, with the help of the United States have allied 
themselves with the YPG in the fight against the Islamic State. 
Basically, the PKK is also fighting against ISIS in the region. The 
popular democratic project currently being built in Rojava, which 
defends the emancipation of women and ecological change, should resonate 
with these governments who claim to want to take up these issues. It's 
quite the opposite. Faced with this observation, we must strengthen our 
solidarity with Kurdistan, propagate the ideas and practices of the 
Rojava revolution and make them resonate with our local struggles.

Wanted (UCL Grenoble)

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Mouvement-kurde-La-repression-ne-faiblit-pas
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