Leyla Güven: My hunger strike will continue until the isolation ends

2019-01-26 14:43:37


	DİYARBAKIR- DTK Co-chair Leyla Güven who has been on a hunger strike for 80 days said her hunger strike was an act of self criticism to Öcalan and that she will continue her hunger strike until the isolation is terminated for good. Güven said: "The government have instructed the court to release me just like they have sent them an instruction not to release me the last time, instead of sending a political committee and the attorneys to İmralı."

	Democratic Society Congress Co-chair (DTK) and People's Democratic Party (HDP) Hakkari Deputy Leyla Güven was arrested on January 31 2018 for criticizing the operation against Efrin. Güven have announced that she will start a hunger strike until PKK Leader Abdullah Öcalan has the rights every prisoner has and the isolation on hiö is terminated.Güven was released at the 5th session of the trial yesterday.

	 

	Leyla Güven who has been on a hunger strike for 80 days, announced that she will continue her hunger strike until the isolation ends after her release.Leyla Güven who continues her hunger strike at her home, spoke to Mezopotamya Agency (MA) about the isolation system, and the hunger strike she initiated and the expansion of the hunger strikes.

	 

	Leyla Güven who said prisons are an area of resistance, said she was unhappy she was released.

	 

	'MR. ÖCALAN IS AN ACT OF WAR AND A REASON FOR PEACE FOR THE KURDISH COMMUNITY'

	 

	Güven, who reminded that Öcalan was brought to Turkey on October 9, 1999, said: "He was kept in an island isolated from life, creating sickness as a prisoner.Since that day, he can see his attorneys and his family on the governments will.The rights to phonecall and open visitation was never practiced for Mr. Öcalan. We knew that something had to be done in the face of such an anti- democratic structure. As politicians carrying out Kurdish politics we have uttered this in different times. We have told the governments time and time again that what they are doing is wrong, that Mr. Öcalan is not just another prisoner, he is an act of war and a reason for peace for the Kurdish community.But the governments did not take it seriously."

	 

	Güven who stated that upon actions and activities after Öcalan's arrest, visiting Öcalan was made possible for once and then the aggravated isolation was put back in order, said: "We had to follow a stronger way of demanding his rights. We did not even know he was alive before the coup attempt on 2016. We have started a hunger strike, 50 Kurdish politicians. His brother Mehmet Öcalan was able to see him on the 8th day of our hunger strike."

	 

	'MR. ÖCALAN IS THE WILL OF A COMMUNITY'

	 

	As a result of the hunger strike action carried out by 50 Kurdish politicians in 2016, Güven reminded that Mehmet Öcalan went to İmralı Island on 11 September 2016 and met with his brother Öcalan.Güven said:" Mr. Öcalan is a political person. He is a leader with a leadership character, a leader of a people. His voice as a politician needs to go out. For the Middle East peace, such an important personality cannot be isolated. We finished our strike after his request, but the same day,we made a statement saying  "If the isolation continues, our actions will continue." We made calls from time to time, we did actions, but the state did not take steps."

	 

	'DİYARBAKIR PRISON HAS A DIFFERENT HISTORY'

	 

	Güven who drea attention to the different history of Diyarbakır Prison she was imprisoned , said: "Diyarbakır prison is a different prison for the Kurds.It is a prison where  betrayal and resistance intertwines.It is a prison where Sakine Cansız, Kemal Pir, Hayri Durmuş, Mazlum Doğan made a historical stand."

	 

	'HUNGER STRIKE IS MY PERSONAL DECISION'

	 

	Güven who stated that the hunger strike she began on November 8 was her decision, said: "Therefore, the day is now. On my behalf, not sharing it with my political party, not DTK where I am co-chairing, as a person and a Kurdish woman who recognized her own self with Mr. Öcalan, I started this strike."

	 

	'THE LEADER OF A COMMUNITY CAN NOT BE ISOLATED'

	 

	Güven underlining that Öcalan is the leader of a community and can not be isolated, said: "I knew AKP-MHP fascism would resist to take a step in this matter. I knew if I fell, I would join my martyr comrades and if I succeeded I would have proved that a leader of a community can not be isolated to the whole world."

	 

	 

	'I WOULD SACRIFICE MY BODY FOR THE FREEDOM OF MR. ÖCALAN'

	 

	Güveb stating that she recognized herself with the liberation movement of the Kurdish said: "I wanted to express that I would gladly sacrifice my body for the freedom of Mr. Öcalan. He is the architecture of all this history. Noone can ignore that. Today they are trying to silence a philosopher like him. I would never accept that.So I started this strike as the co-chair of Democratic Society Congress. I made clear that a one time meeting with his family would not suffice, that he had to have the right to meet with his attorneys and the committees on a regular basis."

	 

	'RESİSTANCE CONTINUES IN THE DUNGEONS'

	 

	Güven who stated that 249 prisoners are still on hunger strike in the prisons said: "Those hunger strikes are a ring of fire. We tried to form a circle around Mr. Öcalan with it.His isolation is our isolation. What they do to him, we consider done to ourself. Therefore the resistance continues in the dungeons."

	 

	'HUNGER STRIKE CONTINUES UNTİL THE ISOLATION ENDS'

	 

	 

	Güven who stated that her release was a political decision said: " The government have instructed the court to release me just like they have sent them an instruction not to release me the last time, instead of sending a political committee and the attorneys to İmralı. They thought that the strike will be over once I'm out. This hunger strike will never be over until this isolation breaks. We believe in our own power and we don't need the sympathy of the power.We started this on our own will and that's how we will end this. Their oppression will not work."

	 

	'WE WILL CROWN THAT RESISTANCE WITH VICTORY'

	 

	Güven evaluated the meeting of Mehmet Öcalan in İmralı Island on January 12: "Our leader said he was fine but we know he is not fine until this isolation ends. This resistance is a self-criticism for him. We will crown this resistance with victory, I have no doubt about it. We know this life we love to the death is only possible with a free leadership and free Kurdistan.I will see it to the end."

	 

	Mehmet Öcalan’ın 12 Ocak’ta İmralı Adası’nda yaptığı görüşmeye işaret eden Güven,’in değerlendirmeleri devamla şöyle: “Önderliğimiz bu konuda iyi olduğunu söyledi ama biz tecridin devam ettiği müddetçe onun iyi olamayacağını çok iyi biliyoruz. Aslında ona bir özeleştiri olarak bu eylemi geliştirdik. Bu eylemi başarıyla taçlandıracağız. Bu konuda benim ne kendimden nede bu eylemde olan hiç bir arkadaşlarımdan bir kaygım yok. Biz uğrunda ölecek kadar sevdiğimiz yaşamı ancak özgür önderlik ve özgür Kürdistan ile mümkün olduğunu biliyoruz. Bu konuda eylemimi sonuna kadar sürdüreceğim.

	 

	'MY VOICE HAVE REACHED TO ALL 4 PARTS OF KURDISTAN'

	 

	The fact that he could not come back to his people like Nelson Mandela is the fault of us, the politicians. As a Kurdish woman politician, it is my fault.That's how I knew when I initiated this action, I was not alone. Now my voice have reached out to even Europe. This came true with the help of our people and the free press."

	 

	We will not end this strike until a message comes from our leader, until his attorneys start seeing him every week, until the isolation ends.

	 

	WE WILL GET RID OF THIS SHAME

	 

	I was luckier than our other friends because I was in Diyarbakır Prison. Because it is the prison of resistance. Sakine, Kemal, Hayri they all visited me every night in Diyarbakır dungeon. I lived this spirituality. That kept me strong. The government wanted to rip me away from it but I won't. I continued my hunger strike in the resistance area, and from now on I will continue here. To live is to resist. No matter where you are.It is our shame that the leader of Kurdish people is in isolation.We will get rid of this shame.We will liberate Mr. Öcalan and those who are in İmralı Prison.

	 

	 

	I SALUT THE KURDISH WOMEN

	 

	I was following the actions supporting us outside the prison. Kurdish women have leaded those actions in four parts of Kurdistan. I salut the resistance of all Kurdish women a thousand times. Victory will be ours!"