The Kurdish community and supporters worldwide are mourning the loss of Erling Folkvord – writer, politician, revered advocate of the Kurdish cause and steadfast supporter of oppressed peoples worldwide, who passed away in Stockholm on Friday 1 March.
Folkvord’s influence transcended borders and ideologies and earned him the admiration and respect of all. Iranian-Kurdish journalist Adnan Hassanpour fondly recalled Folkvord’s unwavering commitment to the Kurdish struggle, emphasising his active involvement in practical campaigns to amplify the voice of the Kurdish struggle. As one of the founders of Solkurd, an organisation dedicated to supporting Kurdistan from Norway and Europe, Folkvord played a key role in mobilising solidarity efforts and raising international awareness.
Reflecting on Folkvord’s profound influence, Hassanpour quoted him as saying, “I have been a communist for more than 50 years and have fought for human liberation, but I know that we have to learn the freedom struggle from Kurdistan.”
Folkvord, who actively supported the Kurdish liberation movement both in theory and in practice, made two visits to Abdullah Öcalan in Damascus during the 1990s. He became the first Norwegian to do so at a time when the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) faced severe criminalisation in Europe.
It was Folkvord’s humility and dedication that endeared him to the Kurdish community, as he took up the cause wholeheartedly as his own.
Erling was a prominent figure in the fight against corruption and inequality in his country, and “Unlike most Western writers who write about the Kurdish region, he was far from any orientalist views and methods, and saw himself as part of the struggle in all of Kurdistan,” said Hassanpour.
*
The Brussels-based Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) has joined the chorus of voices mourning Folkvord’s death, hailing him as a valued friend and staunch ally of the Kurdish liberation movement. The KNK extended its heartfelt condolences to Folkvord’s family, colleagues and loved ones and vowed to honour his memory by continuing the struggle for justice and upholding his cherished values.
•
Folkvord, who was also a respected contributor to Medya News, died while he was in the Swedish capital working on a book project – a comparative study of the Kurdish and Palestinian liberation movements – with his good friend Svein Olsen.
Folkvord’s latest article in Medya News also dealt with the subject of the Palestinian and Kurdish peoples’ fight against occupation. Observing the current struggles of these two peoples, who have fought together in the past, Folkvord wrote:
“…Today, the situation is different and partly more difficult. The Palestinians have got their Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas signed the Oslo agreement in 1993, which has done so much damage to the Palestinians’ struggle for liberation. Abbas, who is now 87 years old, was elected president in 2005 for a four-year term. Since then, there have been no presidential elections.
Many Palestinians hate the Abbas regime. The security forces of the self-governing authorities pursue and arrest Palestinians who want to organize a defensive struggle against the Israeli occupation force. – Abbas is doing the work for Israel, said several of the Palestinians I met last year in Israel and in the West Bank.
A great deal is different between the Palestinian and Kurdish liberation struggles. Yes, there are such big differences that a foreigner like me should be careful about comparing and commenting. After all, I live in Norway, one of the small imperialist countries in Europe. An imperialist country which for the past 35 years has participated in wars of aggression in Europe, Africa and Asia. At the same time, we have had peace in our own country.
But in any case, I know that the peoples of the Middle East have lived with countless wars since the First World War, which are due to the bloody division and politics of domination by imperialist powers. The Zionist movement, with the support of the same imperialists, created the apartheid state of Israel which expelled the Palestinians in 1948 and has since occupied more and more of their land.
But I ask myself: Isn’t there a certain similarity between Mesud Barzani in Bashur and Mahmoud Abbas in Palestine? After all, they cooperate with their respective occupying power – Israel and Turkey.”
•
As the world community bids farewell to a beloved advocate for human liberation, the indomitable spirit of Erling Folkvord will live on in the hearts and minds of all those who strive to create a world free from oppression and inequality.
