An innovative global campaign, set to unfold on 10 December International Human Rights Day, will feature readings and discussions of books by Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) imprisoned leader Abdullah Öcalan.
The initiative, part of the “Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan, A Political Solution for Kurdistan” campaign, aims to draw attention to the social and political theories proposed by Öcalan, who is held in solitary confinement at Turkey’s İmralı prison, and to the broader Kurdish question.
The campaign, under the slogan, ‘Thoughts that transcend iron bars; you cannot imprison ideas’, will commence with its first event in Tübingen, Germany, this Thursday. Its primary focus is to introduce and explore Öcalan’s concept of democratic confederalism, a significant aspect of his writings. The bulk of these events, intended to occur almost entirely on 10 December, are designed to echo globally, with activities planned in 160 countries.
These events coincide with International Human Rights Day, making a poignant statement about Öcalan’s over-24 year isolation, the last 33 months of which has been under absolute incommunicado conditions, and the general state of human rights in Turkey.
By facilitating discussions on Öcalan’s paradigms, the initiative seeks to ignite conversations about human rights, political imprisonment and the Kurdish struggle for recognition and autonomy.
