Two European professors denounce confiscating copies of joint book on Kurdish issue

The two professors, Thomas Jeffrey Miley from the University of Cambridge in Britain and Federico Venturini Miley from the University of Udine in Italy, denounced, in a joint statement, the German authorities confiscating the Arabic copies of their book " Your Freedom and Mine: Abdullah Ocalan and the Kurdish Question in Erdogan's Turkey " upon its arrival at Düsseldorf Airport from Egypt. This is under the allegation that the image of the leader Ocalan is the cover of the book, according to the Furat News Agency.

The Kurdish Center for Studies, based in Bochum, Germany, translated the book into Arabic, and it was printed in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

The Arabic copies were sent to Germany by air freight, but the customs office at Dusseldorf Airport confiscated 500 copies of the book, claiming that there was a picture of the leader Ocalan on its cover, so that the confiscated copies were kept in a warehouse at the airport, since last November 13, and the Kurdish Center for Studies was banned from receiving it, as the center resorted to the German judiciary to lift its seizure.

The two professors said in their statement: "The position of the German authorities reminds us of the dark years in which Europe was suffering from tyranny and the confiscation of freedom of opinion. Our book was translated into several languages ​​and we submitted it to the European Parliament, and no country in Europe has dealt with the book, just as Germany has done, from a tight monitoring point, contrarily, it has attracted great attention because it offers prospects for solving the Kurdish issue.

They added, "The book presented by the Black Rose Publishing House to English readers sheds light on Ocalan’s role in resolving the Kurdish issue. The book was even published in English, Italian, Portuguese and Arabic languages, and it includes many documents and interviews with politicians, journalists and human rights defenders Human".

J.O