ARGENTINE – On the call of KCK and KJK for urgent action against the use of chemical weapons by the Turkish state, the Support Committee for the Kurdistan Women’s Movement of Argentina held a meeting last week. In the meeting, it was decided to start a campaign to highlight the dirty war in Kurdistan and especially the attacks with chemical weapons. The members of the committee stated that the campaign will continue until steps are taken to prevent the use of chemical weapons and announced that they will continue this campaign step by step.
NOT TO THE WAR. NO TO THE USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS IN KURDISTAN!
“On October 24, the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) issued a statement again denouncing the use of chemical weapons by Turkey; prohibited by international law and with the sole aim of breaking the resistance of the Kurdish Liberation Movement.
The Kurdish people fell victim to the use of such weapons several times. In recent history, during the Iran-Iraq war, Saddam Hussein’s chemical attack on civilians on March 16, 1988, killed more than 5,000 Kurds. This event became known internationally as the Halabja Massacre. The same method was also used during the invasion of Rojava by the Turkish Army in October 2019.
In the last 6 months, the use of chemical weapons against the guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has deepened. In the latest attacks alone, 17 guerrillas were brutally killed by being exposed to these poisonous gases. Since last April 23, at least 100 guerrillas have died as a result of these attacks that violate international law governing this type of conflict.
Turkey, a signatory and party to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), is not honoring its commitments to this treaty. We know that even in war there are rules, and their violation constitutes war crimes. However, the Turkish state advances violating conventions and international regulations in the face of the complicit silence of the OPCW (International Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons), the WHO (World Health Organization) and the rest of the international community. The OPCW must not remain silent and must immediately send an investigative delegation.
The Turkish state, through the use of chemical weapons, commits war crimes and crimes against humanity. In addition, it intimidates, persecutes and criminalizes those who raise their voices to demand the investigation of these events. Recently, Şebnem Korucu Fincancı, president of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB), was arrested for her statements on a public video showing the suffering of two PKK members after a chemical attack in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Financi was accused of “propaganda of a terrorist organization” and “publicly demeaning the Turkish nation, the state of the Republic of Turkey and its institutions.” “Opening an investigation to someone who is saying that an investigation should be carried out, gives the impression of wanting to hide a crime,” said the doctor before being arrested.
We make an URGENT call to all Human Rights organizations in Argentina, to demand from the states and the international community in general, the clarification of Truth and Justice in the face of crimes against humanity committed by the Turkish State against the Kurdish people. We call on social, political, feminist, environmental organizations and all those who fight for justice and international solidarity among peoples, to actively demonstrate against the use of chemical weapons in Kurdistan.”
