Languages: Kurdî ‏سۆرانی‎

10th General Meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress

Statement 24.05.2010 – The Kurdistan National Congress ,KNK, held its Tenth General Assembly meeting on 23-24 of May, 2010, in Brussels, Belgium. 110 KNK members, along with guests from the four parts of Kurdistan and the Diaspora including Europe, America and Russia, attended the general assembly meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress; new members took their oaths. The meeting was attended by members from South Kurdistan representing the Kurdistan Laborers’ Party, Kurdistan Democratic Socialist Party, and Kurdistan Democratic Movement , and some of them became permanent members of the congress. Also, the Communist Party of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Islamic Movement sent letters of support to the meeting. After a moment of silence for the lives of the martyrs of the Kurdish revolution, the meeting began with evaluations of the latest developments and national issues in the Middle East and the world. Next, for activities of the Kurdistan National Congress, bodies and committees submitted their reports through the Presidential Council and then put forward future plans to implement them.

The meeting was held during a critical moment for Kurdistan, the Middle East and the world. The superpowers of the world are busy with the dilemma of nuclear weapons. And Iran is drawing on its abilities and potential to possess such weapons. This is categorically rejected by the Western world and the embargo on Iran will be tightened even further. At the same time Iran’s possession of nuclear weapons poses a great danger for Kurdistan. All of the events affecting the countries surrounding Kurdistan, like those of the Caucasus or Near East, have a direct influence on Kurdistan.

Kurdistan is located in the center of the issues and problems of the Middle East. On the one hand there is keen competition among the countries ruling Kurdistan, but on the other hand, these countries are cooperating and allying themselves together against Kurdistan. Since the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century, the Kurdistan issue has become very important in the region and this has changed the balance of power for the ruling regimes upside down, especially in North and South Kurdistan, where advancements have given the Kurds more hope and confidence to move towards victory. Since the end of the twentieth century a new reality has emerged in Southern Kurdistan, through self-administration and then its transformation into a federal system within federal Iraq, which gave the Kurds unlimited confidence and hope. Big gains for the Kurdish people in the cities of northern Kurdistan were materialized through the Kurdish liberation movement’s achievements and its defense of the values and gains of the people of Kurdistan. Also the movement has been successful in the management of many cities that were previously under the influence of the ruling regimes, as well as through the emergence of a dynamic opposition in Parliament. The people of Kurdistan, backed by the Kurdistan liberation movement, are developing rapidly, and not only in the military field; there have been developments in the political, diplomatic, civil and democratic arenas.

States ruling Kurdistan are working together to eliminate the Kurdish liberation movement in spite of big contradictions amongst them. Turkey is especially doing everything in its power to pit Kurds against each other. This policy did not succeed in Iraq during Saddam Hussein or in Iran. States governing Kurdistan established relations with South Kurdistan, then on the other hand used aggressive economic and military policies against the other parts of Kurdistan aimed at dragging the Kurds into internal fighting.

The Kurdistan National Congress held its general assembly meeting at a sensitive and important stage. Attendants discussed the current important issues and strategic developments in Kurdistan. The meeting stressed the need for and importance of internal agreements and national unity. It stressed that national unity is the only guarantee to maintain the gains in all parts of Kurdistan. The meeting asked all the forces of the Kurdistan national movements to not give even a glimmer of hope for the countries ruling Kurdistan to reach their aim of dividing the Kurds. At the end of the meeting the members agreed upon and concluded the decisions and the important resolutions.

Resolutions of the Tenth General Assembly meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress:

North Kurdistan:

Along with the war and the continuation of the search for ways to eliminate the Kurdistan liberation movement, the Kurdish issue in Turkey has reached the stage of dialogue and searching for methods to solve it. In order to improve the atmosphere for resolving the Kurdish issue, the Kurdish community’s systemic organizations, PKK and KCK, proceeded and made the decision to unilaterally suspend military operations for more than a year, and a road map for resolving the issue was prepared and presented to state officials. This was preceded by sending a peace group delegation to Turkey and set the stage for activities and events in the service of peace and dialogue.

Unfortunately, the Turkish government did not take any step in this regard; on the contrary it increased its military attacks, repression by security forces, and diplomatic campaigns to eliminate the Kurdish liberation movement. In addition, the Government of the Justice and Development Party, AKP, used a dual policy to deceive our people of Kurdistan. The Turkish government increased its oppressive policies and held agreements with both Syria and Iran and the Arab central government in Baghdad, trying in the last period to drag the leadership in South Kurdistan to be a part of these agreements. Both Iran and Turkey continue their bombardment of Southern Kurdistan by land and air.

Therefore:

1 – We strongly condemn the conventions between and attacks by both Turkey and Iran against the Kurdistan liberation movement.

2 – We call our people and every person to see the face of a deceptive and fake Justice and Development Party and take a stand.

3 – The intelligence and police agencies still use violence in the civil arena, and in addition they use cruel methods when enforcing laws against Kurdish political activists and in the cities of Kurdistan. Even at the present time many mayors are in prison, as are more than two thousand Kurdish activists from Turkey and over two thousand Kurdish children, simply because they refuse to support the Turkish state. Also there are restrictions on Mr. Abdullah Ocalan, the president of the Kurdish Communities Union, KCK; they systematically prevent him from exercising his legal and legitimate rights. We reject policies of the Turkish State and the government of the Justice and Development Party and we call for the release of all political prisoners and the implementation of the Kurdish people’s demands for democracy.

4 – The Kurdish people’s resistance against all attacks of the ruling nations is legitimate, and we call upon Turkish leadership to renounce violence and to take the path of dialogue as a basis for resolving the Kurdish issue through democratic means. 5 – We call upon the leaders in Southern Kurdistan, to come to their national senses and pay attention to the tricks of neighboring countries.

6 – We call on the international public opinion to recognize the fact of the Kurdish people, to help find a peaceful solution to the Kurdish cause, and prevent further attacks from the ruling states.

East Kurdistan:

The Islamic regime in Iran has gradually escalated its attacks on the Kurdish people. On the one hand it continues its air and land bombardment, and on the other it uses policies of executions and death sentences to break the will of the people and the civil and democratic activities. More than a dozen fighters from the Kurdistan liberation movement have been executed. We strongly condemn the barbaric policies of the Islamic regime in Iran and call on it to stop the executions immediately.

2 – We give our full support to all political prisoners. We consider the struggle of our people in eastern Kurdistan a legitimate one, and we stand by them until the end.

3 – The Islamic regime in Iran should sit at the negotiating table with the legitimate political representatives of the Kurds to solve the Kurdish issue through dialogue.

4 – We call on the Islamic regime in Iran to listen to the calls of the peoples of the world and stop the search for nuclear weapons, which will bring the peoples of the region nothing but destruction and ruin.

South Kurdistan:

1 – Southern Kurdistan must be protected and protect the achievements of the Kurdish people there in every way.

2 – The Kurds should not remain silent towards the resolutions of the Tripartite Commission (Turkey, Iran, and Syria), be wary of their plans, and reinforce their support for the Kurdish movements in other parts of Kurdistan.

3 – Free opinion and thought should be protected, violence and injustice against women should be put to an end. and the rights of ethnic and religious minorities should be assured.

4 – The issue of Kirkuk must not be neglected, and nor should work for the implementation of Article 140 of the Constitution of the Federal Iraq.

5 – Preparations for the commencement of a “national unity conference” should be accelerated.

6 – All the forces of the South should be united in Baghdad to ensure their presence and achievements and to strengthen and protect national unity.

West Kurdistan:

For a long time the Syrian regime has increased its oppression and arrests against our Kurdish people in Western Kurdistan, and the policies pursued by the regime at the present time are the same policies applied in the 1960s. There is displacement of Kurds from their areas and resettlement of Arabs in their place, activation of the policy of ‘the Arab belt’, as well as the issuing of unjust laws that prevent the Kurds from the right to own property; hundreds of thousands of Kurds have been deprived of citizenship, and in addition to hundreds of Kurdish political detainees in Syrian prisons, they suffer from the most severe torture. On the other hand, the Syrian regime has agreements with Turkey and Iran against the Kurdish people and continues its anti-Kurds policies in the international arena. At the present time the Syrian regime has begun the implementation of its policy to keep Kurdistan poor and to motivate the Kurdish population to migrate towards Europe through brokers and mercenaries and to decrease the Kurdistan population in order to control it.

Therefore:

1 – We strongly condemn the attacks carried out by and inhumane policies of the Syrian regime.

2 – We call on Syrian officials to carry out a dialogue with the legitimate representatives of the Kurds to resolve the Kurdish issue by democratic means.

3 – We support all political prisoners, freedom fighters and our people in western Kurdistan. The struggle of the Kurdish people in Syria for their national rights is a legitimate one. We stand by them until the end in order to achieve their goals of democracy.

4 – We call upon our people in the west of Kurdistan to do all they can to stop the Syrian regime’s inhumane policies, to take their place within the Kurdish struggle for freedom, and to not leave their home.

5 – Call for international public opinion to know the facts about the Syrian regime and to stand against its non-democratic policies and collaborate with the struggle of the Kurdish people for freedom.

Belgium

For some time the Kurdish institutions in Belgium have been carrying out activities in accordance with the laws of Belgium. In a democratic way, the Belgian government has become closer with these institutions and the Kurds appreciate this policy and has a positive view of the Belgian government. Unfortunately, on the fourth of March 2010, the Belgian police illegally cracked down on Kurdish political institutions and Kurdish politicians. At the same time the Kurdistan National Congress, KNK, was attacked. We recognize that these attacks were carried out at the request of some countries, including Turkey, and that this campaign was unjust and violates all the laws in force. It was purely a political campaign. It is important to mention that the Kurds have always been paying attention to Belgian laws and this is what led many of our friends in Belgium to stand against the campaign and condemn it strongly. We are confident that most of the people of Belgium are not satisfied with the actions of their government and see this campaign as unfair and outside the laws of Belgium.

We, the members and guests gathered here at the tenth extraordinary meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress, strongly condemn the unjust actions of the officials of the Belgian Government. The Kurdish people have the right to request the Belgian government to apologize for their illegal actions.

Overseas

The tenth extraordinary meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress calls on the Kurdish people in the Diaspora to organize themselves, to preserve their language, national identity and culture, and to fulfill their national responsibilities by giving a strong support to the national struggle in Kurdistan.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we call upon the Kurdish people to form fronts and hold national conventions with the democratic forces in the countries where they live according to local conditions and possibilities and to continue their legitimate struggle to achieve their goals of liberation, freedom, and democracy; to do all they can to reach an agreement for national unity throughout Kurdistan; and to convene a “national unity conference.” To achieve this goal we should not be complacent in implementing the tasks entrusted to us as well as ensuring fertile ground for dialogue and the strengthening of activities between all the national forces of Kurdistan, and, in particular, social activities and activities in the fields of culture, art, literature, language, and education and to hold seminars, meetings, and conferences together. These activities will bring all parts of Kurdistan closer together and support the consolidation of national political cooperation. Kurdish women’s groups should work to bring together national forces, and some of them should hold meetings in order to resolve various problems related to the social and cultural rights of women. The Women Conference held in Amed in April 2010, in which they discussed most of the problems and dilemmas facing the women of Kurdistan, is an example of Kurdish women gathering from the four parts of Kurdistan and the Diaspora. Additionally, the conference represents a step towards the national unity of Kurdistan.

We congratulate all the members and the people of Kurdistan for the convening of the tenth extraordinary meeting of the KNK on 23-24 May, 2010. At the same time, this is the eleventh anniversary of the founding of the Kurdistan National Congress.

10th General Assembly Meeting of the Kurdistan National Congress