Salih Muslim: relentless work for releasing leader Ocalan by Kurdish people

On October 10, 2023, a global campaign was launched under the slogan “Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan, the political solution to the Kurdish issue,” led by political parties, social organizations, philosophers and Nobel laureates, from 74 centers around the world, and later spread to many other countries, Kurdistan and the regions of North and East Syria.

Under the leadership of the popular initiative and within the framework of the global campaign, a campaign was launched in North and East Syria, under the slogan “Freedom for Leader Abdullah Ocalan, the political solution to the Kurdish issue.”

In an interview with ANHA agency, the co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), Saleh Muslim, evaluated the campaign and the party’s efforts to unify the vision of the parties within it.

How do you evaluate the global campaign that was launched under the leadership of prominent international figures?

The campaign that was launched to demand the freedom of Leader Abdullah Ocalan reached the global level, with the participation of political, international and social figures, and philosophers from 74 centres. This indicates that Leader Abdullah Ocalan is not only a leader of the Kurdish people, but that with his thought and philosophy he has become an international leader, the thought that Leader Abdullah Ocalan presented it not only for the Kurdish people, but for all the peoples of the region and the entire world.

A personality like Leader Abdullah Ocalan must have his name written in the pages of history at the global and international level as well. The arrest of Leader Abdullah Ocalan 25 years ago, and the prevention of his lawyer and family from meeting with him, in addition to tightening the isolation from time to time, is in violation of international laws and norms and even Turkish laws as well.

A very important step taken by philosophers and influential figures by launching a global campaign to demand the freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan, because a personality like the leader must not be detained and isolated. He must be free so that his people and the whole world can benefit from him.

The freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan is linked to the freedom of the Kurdish people, and he was arrested, his isolation was intensified, and he was prevented from obtaining his rights because he was Kurdish, and because he preserved the rights of the Kurdish people, and demanded a solution to the Kurdish issue.

What does the global campaign demanding the physical freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan indicate?

The campaign was launched for the sake of humanity, and not for the sake of the Kurdish people in particular, because peace in the Middle East is linked to resolving the Kurdish issue, and if it is not resolved, the problems of the Middle East will remain unresolved, considering the Middle East is the main artery of the world.

The campaign has reached a good level so far, and is still continuing through conferences and meetings, in addition to reading books the Leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Will the campaign launched from around the world affect global public opinion, European and human rights organizations?

The global campaign demanding the physical freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan, with the participation of people from all over the world, will have a significant and widespread impact on global public opinion, in addition to achieving results from a political standpoint.

Looking at the campaign slogan, we see that there is a close connection between leader Abdullah Ocalan’s physical freedom and the Kurdish issue. How do you evaluate this?

Obstacles to resolving the Kurdish issue have existed since ancient times and are based on historical foundations, but in the last two centuries the Kurdish identity and issue have been obliterated, despite achieving many victories and resistance, and to this day they have not stopped. This campaign began with struggle and resistance from the Kurdish people, and this struggle and resistance began in the last half century, at the hands of Leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Leader Abdullah Ocalan, through his struggle and resistance, benefited from the experiences of his ancestors. Ubaidullah al-Nahri, Sheikh al-Saeed, Sayyid Reda, Qazi Mohammad, and Mulla Mustafa Barzani, and avoided the mistakes that had been made in the past, to provide a solution for his people.

The Kurdish issue and the freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan are linked to each other, and the presence of the leader among the Kurdish people is important and necessary.

How do you see the Kurdistanian people joining the global campaign?

The campaign demanding the freedom of leader Abdullah Ocalan spread throughout the world, and most countries participated in it, but we did not reach the required level of events and activities organized in North and East Syria, and the Kurdish people in parts of Kurdistan must be companions of their leader, and join more in the campaign to ensure achieving physical freedom for the leader.

The peoples of Kurdistan can do a lot for the leader's physical freedom, realize the democratic project, and demonstrate militant resistance with all guerrilla capabilities through solidarity and cohesion.

What is required of the people of North and East Syria now to achieve the physical freedom of Leader Abdullah Ocalan?

Demanding the physical freedom of Leader Abdullah Ocalan is a duty that falls on the shoulders of all Kurdistanian peoples, but the greatest duty falls on the people of North and East Syria with all its components and sects, because the ideology and thought of the democratic nation from an organizational, intellectual and political standpoint has settled in North and East Syria and has entered into force.

How can we support the hunger strike campaign in Turkish prisons?

Hunger strikers in the past and until now have played a historical role, and what the hunger strikers are showing in Turkish prisons now shows us a picture similar to the continuity of prison resistance in 1982, and everyone must rally around these guerrilla fighters because they are the sons of our people, and the people of Rojava must support This struggle.

Are there efforts to unify the vision of the Kurdish parties within the framework of the global campaign?

We, in the Democratic Union Party, are also part of the campaign demanding the freedom of our leader, and our efforts will not stop, neither at home nor abroad, and we are trying with all our capabilities, through meetings with the concerned legal, political and societal authorities and in our diplomatic relations, to demand the freedom of the leader.

T/ Satt.

ANHA