HANNOVER – On Saturday, March 18th at 2:30 p.m. a demonstration took place from Weissekreuzplatz to the Lutherkirche in Hanover on the day of political prisoners under the motto: “Our solidarity against their repression”. Around 400 people from different contexts of society took part. A broad alliance had called for the demonstration.
Out of solidarity, the demonstrators are demanding the freedom of all political prisoners. They stress that they are against the repression of progressive movements. “Today, as every day, political activists around the world are in prison. There are political prisoners not only in Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Turkey and the USA, but also in Germany. Her only crime: fighting for the ideas of a better world for all people!” said one participant at the demonstration. The participant further explained: “We are protesting here as a sign of our anger! Anger at the imprisonment of our friends and comrades, whether climate activists, anti-fascists or internationalists.But we are also demonstrating here as a sign of our solidarity with them and their struggles. Fights that must be fought, fights against fascists in all countries, against the worldwide oppression of left revolutionary through state structures, struggles against the destruction of our environment by corporations, political actors and capitalism! We will not let state repression get us down. Any attack on activists is an attack on the entire left movement. Only in solidarity can we counter these attacks! Whether in Lützerath or Kurdistan, whether in Turkey, the USA or Iran, you are not alone! Our solidarity against their repressions!”
The speech by the initiative Defend Kurdistan Hanover said:
“The PKK has been banned in Germany since 1993 under the Law on Associations.This ban provides the basis for the criminalization of Kurds and continues to this day. Another basis is §129a/b, which has also been used against alleged PKK members since 2011.In general, there is a general suspicion of the so-called “PKK reference” in any Kurdish political, cultural and social activity. Concerts and festivals have been and are being banned, and there have been several cases of German police intervening at Kurdish family celebrations. The German police are also happy to try to ban traditional Kurdish clothing, pointing out that it stands for the PKK, to name just a few examples.
Constant surveillance, defamation and criminalization is legitimized and the image of every Kurd, every Kurdish woman is a potential terrorist was created.This justifies considerable fundamental rights encroachments on freedom of assembly and freedom of expression. It has already become an absolute standard that the police at any rally, demo & other legal, registered, political expression of opinion in public. Room bullied by randomly banning flags & slogans. Again and again, policewomen of Kurdish or Turkish origin are used in a targeted manner to provoke activists in their respective language and thus legitimize violent intervention.
Searches of houses/apartments/associations, arrests, court proceedings, denial of naturalization, threats of deportation and revocation of asylum status have become a daily threatening reality for Kurds in the diaspora. We have to state that the structural, anti-Kurdish racism has long since spilled over from Turkey to Germany & that by defaming the PKK, an attempt is made to the largest fascist structure in Germany – the gray wolves.
18 people have already lost their lives here in Germany due to the ban and 12 friends are currently in custody. At least 63 people are currently being investigated for PKK membership. The 12 friends have all been imprisoned under Section 129 a/b for activities such as organizing demonstrations, events and collecting donations, which would not be criminal offenses without the PKK ban. The consequences described here are only a small part of the reality of the Kurdish society living here in Germany in the diaspora. Therefore we demand:
Away with §129a and b
Down with the ban on the PKK!
Freedom for all political prisoners!
Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan!”
After the loud and colorful demonstration, the internationalists lit the Newroz fire in the UJZ-Kornstraße as a sign of resistance. Kurdish Govend (folk and resistance dances) were danced and revolutionary songs were sung together with Kurdish
