Zübeyir Aydar: "The Kurds will not be left without an organization to represent them."

JAYRO SANCHEZ

Zübeyir Aydar is a Kurdish lawyer and politician who is a member of the Executive Council of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK). He has been one of the most important leaders of the ethnic nationalist movement since the capture of Abdullah II. Reber Apo Öcallan was killed by Turkish security forces in 1999. We spoke with him about the disappearance of his movement's most important organization: the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) announced last month that it was renouncing arms and dissolving as a political entity. This marks the end of an era, but also, in the words of one of the party's leaders, Duran Kalkan, "a new beginning." Under what conditions will this reboot take place?

During its 12th Congress, the PKK decided that it was no longer a useful instrument for the Kurdish people due to the changes experienced by societies in the Middle East and the rest of the world. Our leader, Apo, recognized the need for a different system for some time, and we have begun to take steps in that direction.

The movement will not be left without an organization to represent it. We are simply seeking the most appropriate tool to do so, because the ways of fighting have changed greatly in the last two decades. The fire of weapons has stopped, although our political, cultural, economic, and popular offensives will expand.

Your party and the Turkish state have been at war with each other for over 40 years. It has been long and bloody. Will it be difficult to heal the wounds?

The fighting has caused great suffering on both sides, but we have now begun a process of dialogue through which we seek a solution to our problems.

One of the key issues is the reparation policies to which victims are entitled. There are hundreds of thousands of them: those killed and wounded in battle, their families, displaced persons, prisoners…

Among the latter are numerous Kurdish political and civil society leaders, including their top leader, Abdullah Öcalan. Is the possibility of peace linked to his release?

It won't be possible to obtain it if Ankara doesn't empty its prisons. Many of our comrades are wanted for their ideals, and we want them to return to our country freely. However, our first objective is to reverse the imprisonment of Reber Apo, who will lead the movement's political action and will be our main negotiator in the talks with the Turkish government.

The PKK abandoned its aspirations for the establishment of a Kurdish national state long ago. Now, it only demands that Turkey guarantee its people the creation of a model of self-government integrated within its own institutions. What general guidelines do you propose for its configuration?

The party fought for a united and independent Kurdistan when conditions required it. Today, its members believe that it is most appropriate for our peoples to live together on an equal footing. Reber Apo expresses this clearly in the fifth volume of his DefensesThe state must remove the legal obstacles that prevent Kurds from organizing and governing themselves democratically.

The KCK, to whose Executive Committee you belong, is an organization with radical democratic beliefs. Do you think its projects can fit within Ankara's framework?

We know it won't be easy to carry out our project with the current government. Even so, we will maintain our openness to dialogue because we have popular support, good training, and self-confidence.

Your party firmly defends equality between men and women in all aspects of life. Will you be able to reach an agreement with President Erdoğan's conservative-democratic administration on this issue?

The president and the religious elites consider women to be second- or even third-class individuals. We do not accept their views on this issue, and we will not allow them to interfere with their freedoms. This will be one of the basic points of any agreement we sign.

The struggle for their liberation is not limited to Kurdistan, but is spreading everywhere. This is not an ethnic issue, but a universal one.

Earlier this year, Rojava authorities blamed Ankara for attacking their military forces and distracting them from their fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). Could the inclusion of the Kurdish community in Turkey's political landscape lead to improved relations with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AADNES)?

We support our Syrian counterparts and Erdoğan establishing a friendly relationship. Our neighbors have declared a ceasefire and initiated bilateral talks with several parties, although no agreement has yet been reached. We believe our own contacts with Turkey are having a positive impact on Rojava.

Since the end of last year, Damascus has been under the control of the Levant Liberation Organization (HTS). Former collaborators of the Al-Nusra Front and ISIS are the political powers of the new Syria. Could this development have consequences for regional stability?

We believe so. Their attacks against the Alawite, Druze, and Christian communities have reinforced our conviction that the group will not be able to stabilize the country. In this sense, the establishment of a democratic Syrian government is an urgent task for all.

Could the most intransigent political and military elements of the Turkish state jeopardize the peace process between it and the Kurdish community?

There are sectors in Turkey that oppose this effort. They have been trying to obstruct and sabotage it for 32 years. Within the government, there are also factions with different programs and agendas, and we cannot say that Erdoğan and others are sincerely demonstrating their desire for an agreement.

We do want it, and I would like to emphasize that, according to Reber Apo's recent letters, our movement needs international solidarity to carry out what we are planning. We ask our friends to stand by us, to enrich us with their ideas, to understand us from our own perspective, and to work with us.

Jayro sanchez is a Spanish journalist