You have to accept one version of the truth narrated by the parties to these conflicts. For most people it is quite comfortable to be in one of these camps. I personally have never taken any side in this struggle. I have my own reasons. I am allergic to nationalism, regardless of whether it is assumed by the majority or the oppressed. I am totally against violence and I do not like unquestionable sacred authority, whether it is claimed by a state or an organization. For all these reasons, as a human rights defender, I have always criticized the Turkish state and the PKK for the human rights violations they have committed. State security forces did unimaginable, terrible things in southeastern Turkey. But the PKK did terrible things, too. I do not want to go into all of this but, for me, one of the symbols of this conflict is the Akduvar vs. Turkey case that was handled by the European Court of Human Rights. In this case you read the tragic story of Kurdish people whose villages were burnt down by both Turkish security forces and members of the PKK. They were victimized by the state and the PKK, both of whom accused them of aiding and abetting the other side.
I have not taken a side in this conflict, but this is a relatively easy thing for a person like me who is ethnically Turkish and who has always lived in western Turkey. While I was attending cases on the destruction of villages, extra-judicial killings and other Kurdish issues before the European Court of Human Rights, I became very close friends with some Kurdish human rights advocates and I was amazed by the attitude and political stance some of them took. They were living under constant and imminent threat from JİTEM (an illegal extension of the gendarmerie) and they were witnessing all these tragedies created by the Turkish security forces, but they never lost sight of the violence created by the PKK. Human rights advocacy just came from the bottom of the hearts of these people and their consciences did not allow them to turn a blind eye to any inhuman behavior they witnessed. I was very deeply impressed by their unbiased human rights struggle. Tahir Elçi and Sezgin Tanrıkulu were just two of them.
Tanrıkulu, who is also the former president of the Diyarbakır Bar Association, just published a heartfelt article a few days ago on the killing of his friends by a land mine planted by the PKK. I think it should be read by everyone who wishes to understand the humanitarian cost of this conflict. What cause can justify the sacrifice of the lives of human beings? Below, you will read the revolt of my dear friend Sezgin Tanrıkulu against this senseless war, against his own people who value political causes over the lives of human beings. Let’s read his article together:
Damn it.
This war continues to take away our loved ones, those closest to us, through the most treacherous of methods...
Damn it…
In addition, this war is taking us away from ourselves in pieces.
Damn this war.
This war is taking us apart in such a way that we cannot put our pieces back together…
Damn this war.
Damn these lowly traps that are used in this war.
Damn it.
Whoever has done this,
for whatever reason,
Damn it
Nobody can legitimize this ambush by citing the disproportion of methods used in this war as an excuse.
The latest victim of this act was Sedat. His was life that was outside the realm of this world, like that of a dervish, taking humanity and life into account as the centrifugal point of his personality and his profession...
But he is no longer with us!
Like a dervish he ran to provide aid wherever there was injustice, my dear friend who defended the truth with a handful of companions in desolate lands, the former chairman of the Batman Association.
Sedat is no longer with us…
Yes, damn it!
Damn this method that is trying to transform every space we live in to a less livable abode, setting a trap against everything.
Yes, damn this trap that ended Sedat’s life, freedom -- by separating the web of relations that enveloped their lives, peace, democracy and the lives of the Özdemir brothers, who had devoted their lives to democracy and the non-violent methods in this struggle.
A method of war that kills innocent people with traps in such a fashion cannot be the war of Kurds who are struggling for their rights and freedom and are thirsty for their rights and freedoms; nor can it be conducted in the name of the rights and freedoms of Kurds.
Yes, perhaps this trap was not set up for them...
Perhaps this mine was to hit the soldier who was likely to head there following the tip-off about the fire.
OK, but what would that have changed?
Should we have remained silent in such an event: if soldiers had died instead of our close friends?
Were we supposed to remain silent and think, “What a victory!” if those who died in the trap were soldiers? No! We should not have done any of this.
This is why the time has come!
This is the right time to object to this war and these methods in a loud proclamation.
Right now, yes, right now we should rise against this war and this method 1,000 times over…
We must speak up loudly against these traps that are set up against our lives, the lives of our friends and our comrades -- we should echo that these traps are ripping to shreds our human values.
I have a word or two for the people of Batman…
We cannot bring back a single life that we have lost…
But life should have remained where Sedat was, particularly where he lost his life. But it didn’t.
Is this your sense of justice and righteousness?
Is this your will power of loyalty and fidelity?
Is this your longing for freedom and democracy?
Is this your goal of peace and friendship?
Where have you been over the last few days?
Was it too hot? Or is it that when it’s our “own mine” that exploded the ruptured bodies, even if they are most beloved, our feet and perceptions are rendered useless? Are you no longer able to run to a cemetery or hospital?
Is this how you take ownership over your dervish, your Sufi, who devoted his entire life to struggling for rights and freedom, expecting nothing in return, someone who wished to remain behind the scenes, tread lightly, who wore a smile at all times and whose only tie to this world was human beings and human life?
Was it not him who felt each of your sufferings in his head with his warmth and compassion, who answered all of your questions, never turning off his phone and running to your aid under all circumstances?
Which one of you did not see him by their side at times when nobody could be reached?
Then where have you been for days?
The mine that Sedat [Özevin] and the Özdemir brothers [Sadi, Salih and Sofi Özdemir] stepped on didn’t just bloodily kill him and his friends, it also shattered our hearts 1,000 times over.
This is why, as I have stated before, those who say that they are fighting for our rights and freedoms should transform this struggle into a non-violent environment through their own volition. Because this war and these methods have no benefits for the rights and freedoms of Kurds and everyone under the sun knows this is true.
This war and these methods have absolutely no returns in terms of the freedom and rights of Kurds; the supremacy of law and justice and peace and democracy should be implemented. It is now more than ever the time to loudly proclaim that this war and these methods should be implemented for our rights and freedoms.
