The President of the Scottish Trade Union Council (STUC), Mike Arnot, expressed strong support for the ongoing international campaign “Freedom for Öcalan, A Political Solution for Kurdistan“.
🔴 Mike Arnot, Scottish Trade Union Council President calls for global support in 'Freedom for Öcalan, A Political Solution for Kurdistan’ campaign#FreedomForOcalanNow | #PoliticalSolution | @eremkansoy
🔗 https://t.co/mkmqwHf3h4 https://t.co/8O9RZKcM0j pic.twitter.com/6LDhQDADG5
— MedyaNews (@1MedyaNews) November 14, 2023
The campaign’s primary objective is the release of Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), as a crucial step towards initiating a renewed peace process in Turkey and the broader region.
During an interview with Medya Haber TV’s Erem Kansoy, Arnot emphasized the vital role Öcalan plays as the leader of the Kurdish people and the importance of his freedom in representing their interests globally.
“The issue of the release of Öcalan is vitally important for the people across the world because he is a worldwide figure, and the cause of the Kurdish people and the settlement of the issues that the Kurdish people have are worldwide issues,” he said.
Arnot further argued that Öcalan’s involvement is essential for achieving peace in the Middle East, asserting that “if you want settlement of peace in the Middle East, you need players like Abdullah Öcalan having an input into that as part of that broader settlement.”
He called on global forces, including the United Nations, to recognise Öcalan’s significance and consider his ideas of democratic confederalism as potential solutions for the region’s challenges.
Arnot criticized European Union’s silence regarding Öcalan’s prolonged incommunicado detention, which has been going on for two and a half years.
He urged European leaders and the United Nations to apply pressure on Turkey, utilising political and economic means, to secure Öcalan’s release and facilitate meaningful discussions towards a just settlement in Kurdistan.
