NADA Alliance calls for global solidarity with activist Aisha Gokhan

NADA Alliance has called on the international community and human rights organizations to prioritize the case of the activist Aisha Gokhan and document the violations to which female political activists are exposed.

This came in a statement issued on Thursday by the Democratic Women's Alliance in the Middle East and North Africa (NADA), calling for solidarity with activist Aisha Gokhan, who faces a 30-year prison sentence. Moreover, it is supposed that she will be retried on Friday, after the appeal of her sentence is issued.

The statement made clear, "We are keeping up with great concern the developments related to the trial of the activist Aisha Gokhan, a woman who dedicated her life to defending freedom, the rights of Kurdish people and women. She was previously the spokesperson for the Free Women's Movement and a resounding voice for all women who refused to submit to tyranny and violence."

It emphasized that the Turkish authorities that fear the voice of free women viewed her struggle as a "crime," transforming her defense of dignity and legitimate resistance into a false accusation. It added, "She was sentenced to 30 years in prison on fabricated charges under the guise of supporting terrorism, in a clear attempt to silence her voice and the spirit of struggle she represents. However, the truth that everyone knows is that what Aisha Gokhan defended was resistance in the face of injustice, justice in the face of oppression, and equality in the face of a repressive patriarchal mentality."

The statement indicated that "On Friday, her retrial will be issued after the appeal. We, in Nada Alliance, consider this trial a turning point that reveals either the judiciary's bias towards the values of justice or its continued submission to the logic of political repression. We believe that the trial of activists like Aisha Gokhan is not an individual matter, but rather a humanitarian and moral issue related to the freedom of all women and the right of peoples to self-determination."

In its statement, the NADA Alliance called on the international community to assume its responsibility, not to ignore these clear violations against human rights, and called on human rights organizations to prioritize Aisha Gokhan's case and document the violations suffered by female political activists. The statement stated, "Feminist movements must raise their voices in solidarity with a woman who holds the banner of freedom in the most difficult circumstances. In addition, the democratic forces and peace-loving peoples must consider this case a symbol of the struggle for freedom against tyranny."

The statement noted that the arrest and trial of a woman who embodied the will of resistance is a threatening message to all women demanding their rights, and considered it a "message of intimidation" to all societies dreaming of democracy. The statement continued, "We affirm that history has proven that free voices are not imprisoned, the will of women is unbreakable, and that the tears of female activists behind bars will turn into determination."

شFreedom is not tried, justice is not imprisoned, and legitimate resistance is not criminalized. Therefore, let us make the day of her trial a day of global solidarity, a day on which the voices of women from everywhere are raised, affirming that the shackles of the jailer do not break the will of freedom."

J.J