Kurdistan Parliament in Exile - May

[kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu]

Reply-To: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu
From: Kurdistan Committee of Canada <kcc at magi.com>
Subject: Kurdistan Parliament in Exile - May 7, 1995

Kurdistan Parliament in Exile
Executive Council

Statement to the Public
May 7, 1995

     The people of the world are currently celebrating the 50th
anniversary of the ending of the Second World War in which millions
of people lost their lives, became disabled, and suffered
irreparable agony; this as the direct result of the redivision and
redistribution of the world under the fascist imperialist system.
Traces of this linger on to this day.
     Today people throughout the world join in commemorative
activities in order not to forget the disasters that war brings and
to ensure that these sorrows will never be relived.
     It should never be forgotten that an end to war on this earth
is inextricably tied to the end of colonialism, oppression, and
atrocities. Tragically, this is not yet the case; wars are being
waged in various parts of the world.
     It is the imperialist system that holds sole responsibility
for the division of Kurdistan and for failing to resolve the
problem of ongoing oppression. The problem of Kurdistan is
therefore the concern of all humanity.
     The fascist Turkish state is waging genocide against the
people of Kurdistan, as the Ottoman Empire had done before it. Our
people are living in great pain. As the result of state policies of
oppression, assimilation, and forced repatriation, half of our
people must live abroad, tens of thousands of them have been
slaughtered, tortured, and arrested. More than 2,500 villages have
been destroyed and emptied. Our natural wealth has been looted, our
forests burnt down. Everything that represents our national
identity has been damaged and destroyed. And the Turkish state can
only continue this savage war with help from the outside world.
     Our people show great resistance in this war against their
culture, their history, and their whole existence. Their struggle
is in self-defence, is legitimate, and represents a struggle for
all humankind.
     As we all come together today to commemorate the 50th
anniversary of the end of World War II, we call on the whole world
not to remain silent in the face of the destruction of our culture
and heritage which is now taking place in Kurdistan, the very
birthplace of civilization; not to condone this war which casts
shame upon the whole of humanity.
     We call on the United Nations and all international
organizations, most particularly the United States of America and
all European countries, to seek a political solution that will
bring about an end to the war in Kurdistan. Once again we stress
the readiness of the peoples of Kurdistan for peace within the
framework of national democratic rights. It is within this
framework that we can hope to find democratic, political
resolutions for all nations under colonial oppression and, in so
doing, serve to bring about peace in this world.
     We wish for peace and an end to colonialism for all the
peoples of the world.