CENTRAL NEWS – With the fall of the Soviet Union, the capitalist system announced its victory with the “end of history;” the backbone of global resistance against capitalism and colonialism had fallen and left liberalism, manifested in the European Union, NATO, NAFTA, the World Bank, and IMF with the United States as its head, alone to reap the spoils of their war against humanity. They felt like they owned the world and in a very real way they did: resistance continued but was sparse and unorganized globally against a global machine that was marching into every corner of the Earth. The spontaneous spirit of the people could not be killed. But the occasional lone uprising itself cannot, and did not, pose a threat to the system as a whole. The capitalist system, living through the legacy of domination that had been marching steadily for five thousand years through all of its metamorphoses and adaptations from Sumer to Washington, reached a point where it dominated globally.
Any interruptions to this narrative of success could not be accepted: here lies the importance of the emergence of Reber APO and the Kurdish Freedom Movement. This movement, rising out of the colonial reality of Kurdistan, started by giving the Kurdish people an organized way of resistance against the immediate threat of Turkish fascism. With the progression of the movement came the development of the new paradigm by Reber APO: a move away from the traditional analyses of revolutionary movements into a new dynamic theory and practice based on woman’s liberation and democratic values. This new theory, which brings the small struggles of daily life into a larger historical context, combined with the revolutionary practice and resistance by the movement itself, quickly attracted the attention of the capitalist system. Reber APO and the Kurdish Freedom Movement, directly under the nose of NATO forces, allowed the legacy of freedom to breath again. This fact is what led to the international conspiracy in 1999 against Reber APO by the forces of the capitalist system: he was no longer an individual but a representative of the Kurdish people’s right to existence and furthermore a representative of all peoples’ right to live free from domination and exploitation.
The guerrilla warfare in the 21st century
The capitalist system could not allow a successful revolutionary guerilla force to live into the 21st century but, despite the arrest of Reber APO, the guerilla has not only continued its struggle but grown and developed. Through decades of historical resistance and through the blood given by the martyrs, the movement has been able to establish liberated territories in which not only is the society able to live freely and spontaneously but these territories, such as Rojava, are places where the possibilities of revolution and free life can be openly discussed and practiced by revolutionaries from other parts of the world. As the old backbone of international revolution crashed under the influences of liberalism, attacks of the system and the disappearance of the Soviet Union as supporter, it appears that a new one is forming based on what has been learned from past experiences in the history of resistance. Kurdistan has the ability to spread its revolutionary spirit globally in an organized fashion.
This is why the fascist Turkish state has made it their primary intention to attack free Kurds and the achievements of the movement everywhere in the world: not only does this movement pose a threat to the existence of the Turkish fascism, but threatens the functions and goals of NATO and the capitalist system. In this sense, the Turkish state’s role is that of a hitman working for a larger mafia organization; it is given the funds and resources to achieve a goal and, despite lack of progress, cannot stop until it is completed. This leads to desperation and dirty tactics, such as the killing of civilians, ethnic cleansing, and the use of chemical weapons as it happened hundreds of times in the free mountains of Kurdistan. Still, the resistance of the guerilla cannot be broken by the fascist Turkish state and its collaborateurs.
The Kurdish Freedom Movement clearly holds a very important role for internationalist resistance against the global capitalist system. The movement does not see the struggle are merely local but, especially with the new paradigm, recognizes the global and historical reality of the enemy. This means that one cannot see victory in liberating one’s homeland while another is still struggling against the same forces on a different continent. This can be taken tactically, in the sense that the capitalist system still remains strong, or emotionally, as one must always stand in solidarity with sisters and brothers in struggle across the globe. The Kurdish Freedom Movement, being materially and theoretically developed with liberated territories, gives itself this role of working with and assisting fellow revolutionaries in different circumstances.
This is possible in a variety of ways, including using the strong organization to give a backing to struggles in other countries and using the liberated territories as a place for development and education for internationalist revolutionaries. It is in this way that the Kurdish Freedom Movement can be seen as developing into the backbone of international revolution; it is able to be a secure base that emits revolutionary hope and spirit.
This internationalist spirit is not one-sided. Many internationalist revolutionaries have come to Kurdistan with the intention of working with and supporting the movement’s struggle with many more supporting from their home countries. These revolutionaries recognize the value and historical significance of Reber APO and the revolution in Kurdistan. It is recognized that the immediate goals of the movement in Kurdistan are also necessary for revolutions worldwide: the physical release of Reber APO, liberation of occupied zones in Rojava, the defense of the guerilla in the mountains. Without the success of these goals, it is difficult to imagine the success of an international revolution: the revolution in Kurdistan is the strongest hope in the world today, one that we can hope to use as a base for the international struggle against the capitalist system.
In this sense it is important to not wait till its to late while in Kurdistan a war between fascism and liberation is fought, a war for existence or extinction. Then there is no other goal to accept then freedom and liberation. While the fascist Turkish state in the discussion about accepting Finland and Sweden into NATO sees a new chance to harm the struggle of the movement and in over all is using the shadow of the war in Ukraine to launch attacks against all the liberated territories of the Kurds like Rojava, Sinjar or the free mountains of Kurdistan. So we must not just watch and stay silent. As internationals from all over the world we have to understand the strategic role of the revolution in Kurdistan and the importance of the defense of these territories also for our freedom and for the preparation of more revolutions. We must fight in all ways possible. If this means joining the guerilla in the free mountains of Kurdistan were you fight shoulder to shoulder with Kurds, Arabs, Turks, Armenians and a lot of internationalists from all parts of the world or attacking Turkish fascism where ever we see it. We must play our role and support the revolution in Kurdistan! Supporting the revolution in Kurdistan means supporting the world revolution!
