“It’s theatre to try and put to sleep the Kurdish resistance and the ever-growing support for the cause of the Kurdish people among progressive public opinion in the West,” Swiss doctor and politician Franco Cavalli has said regarding the recent negotiations surrounding the Kurdish question in Turkey, in an interview with independent journalist Serkan Demirel, published by Firat News (ANF).
In the interview, Cavalli highlighted that Abdullah Öcalan’s freedom is prerequisite for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish question in Turkey and compared Öcalan to South African revolutionary leader Nelson Mandela, saying that Mandela’s freedom “was the fundamental act that brought an end to the dictature [in South Africa].”
Questioning the motives of the Turkish state behind the recent negotiations about the Kurdish question in Turkey, he stated that while discussions are being held, “Turkey is harder than ever against Rojava [North and East Syria]”, and that the Turkish state “is really not giving Öcalan a real chance to speak and act”.
Cavalli argued strongly against calls for the Kurdish armed forces in North and East Syria to lay down their arms, saying that these forces are the only reason why Turkey has not been able to take full control of the territories of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) – also known as Rojava.
“So it’s all very well to lay down arms and have peace, but you have to be sure that it’s not just a little theatre, and in the end there’s total disaster, because once you’ve sold the arms, and the others arrive and you don’t have weapons, it’s all over,” Cavalli explained.
He drew comparisons with the situation of “national liberation struggles in Latin America and other parts of the world” who were “promised that if they laid down their arms, democracy would follow” and also gave the example of the anti-fascist partisan struggles that fought against German fascism and laid down their arms after the Second World War, pointing out how this led to the United States gaining power and control.
“So, my impression is that, for the moment, there is no serious guarantee that this could be positive for Rojava, for the Kurds, for the world, for all those who believe in democracy,” he concluded, and said that if he were to decide, he would say “We’ll keep our weapons”.
Prof. Dr. Franco Cavalli has served as president of the International Union against Cancer (UICC) between 2006 and 2008 and is one of Switzerland’s longest-serving politicians and distinguished oncologists. He was named Switzerland’s ‘Person of the Year’ in 2006 for his contributions to society for his work in cancer and palliative care in the developing countries.
