Events, Video, Women's Alliance for Kurdistan in Iraq and Syria

The Politics of Prisons: Women’s Critiques and Alternatives

Around the world, prison systems rely on systems and structures that oppress and subjugate groups of people for the purpose of exploitation and social control. Prisons are a site of struggle for many social movements, which believe in approaches to justice and social peace beyond authoritarianism, surveillance and violence. Why do prison struggles matter to women? What could prison abolition look like from a feminist perspective?

The panel is organized by Cenî Kurdish Women’s Office for Peace as part of the ‘Solidarity Keeps Us Alive’ campaign.

Speaker’s bios:

Continue reading “The Politics of Prisons: Women’s Critiques and Alternatives” →

Conflict resolution

Solidarity message to press conference on 13 February 2015

 

I Margaret Owen, on behalf of the UK based PATRONS OF PEACE IN KURDISTAN, who are among the “first” signatories of the petition to secure the release Abdullah Ocalan from his 16 year incarceration on the Isle of Imrali by Turkey, greet you.

We send our most fervent wishes to the organisers of the March to Strasbourg and to all those gathering in Strasbourg on February 13th to demand that Ocalan is freed. The long imprisonment of the Kurdish leader is one of the greatest injustices in history, not just for the Kurdish people, but for all peoples of the world who salute Ocalan for his breadth of vision in defending the universal values of democracy, pluralism, gender equality, and freedom.

London, 7 February 2015

Margaret Owen on behalf of Lord Avebury, Lord Rea, Lord Dholakia, Jill Evans MEP, Jean Lambert MEP, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Hywel Williams MP, Elfyn Llwyd MP, Conor Murphy MP, John Austin, Bruce Kent, Gareth Peirce, Noam Chomsky, John Berger, Edward Albee, Prof Mary Davis, Mark Thomas, Nick Hildyard, Stephen Smellie, Derek Wall

 

Freedom of expression, KCK trials, Kurdish language rights, Political prisoners

Support continues to grow for the hunger strike from across the world

Urgent appeal:

November 10, 2012

 

To the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR),

To the Parliament of the European Union,

To the Parliament of the United Kingdom,

To Amnesty International,

To Human Rights Watch,

To international media outlets, and

To all political parties, trade unions and freedom lovers across the world:

 

The lives of hundreds of Kurdish political prisoners in Turkey must be saved.

We are writing to you regarding the recent wave of mass protests and hunger strikes in Turkey by Kurdish people. 63 Kurdish political prisoners have been on hunger strike for political solution to the Kurdish Question in Turkey since Sept 12th 2012. The hunger strike has been spreading day by day. While by the end of October the number of prisoners on hunger strike reached about 700 in more than 50 prisons, on November 5th spokesperson of the political prisoners declared that from now on 10,000 political prisoners are on hunger strike. Continue reading “Support continues to grow for the hunger strike from across the world” →

Freedom of expression, KCK trials, Kurdish community, Kurdish language rights, Political prisoners

CENI calls for solidarity with hunger strikers

CENI – Kurdish Women’s Office for Peace has issued this statement on the ongoing hunger strikes by political prisoners in Turkey, which is reaching a critical stage:

 

Call for support for Kurdish prisoners on hunger strike: Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan and all political prisoners!

 

On the 30th anniversary of the military coup in Turkey, a new hunger strike was started by political prisoners in Turkish jails, which has spread day by day and reached a critical level. Continue reading “CENI calls for solidarity with hunger strikers” →

KCK trials, Political prisoners

The 33rd Day! by Memed Boran

This article appears in apogeeculture.blogspot.co.uk:

From Hunger-strike to ‘Death Fast’

On 12th September 2012, nine women prisoners in Diyarbakir E type prison began an indefinite hunger-strike. In the statement they made via lawyers they highlighted two demands: the right to use their Kurdish mother tongue in the public sphere, including court and the removal of obstacles preventing imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan from negotiating in peace talks with the Turkish state. Soon after, many other inmates, men and women, from prisons in every corner of Turkey began joining the hunger-strike; sometimes in groups and in certain prisons individually. Now there are 380 prisoners in 39 prisons who are on what has surpassed a hunger-strike and become a ‘death fast.’ This is their 33rd day.

 

Read the rest of the article here.