domingo, 28 de agosto de 2016

KDS in English: US and Russia openly demonstrate against self-determination and freedom of peoples


By Martín Romero

In their last meeting US and Russia representatives came to a further understanding about the situation in Rojava. Both superpowers made public several of the facts that this blog started exposing a few months ago, and yet again they act as if they were entitled to decide over the freewill of other nations. 

Although the syrian and ukranian conflicts occupy the center of the official agenda of the meetings between John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov, the kurdish issue has taken a preponderant role when it comes to resolving the syrian conflict in a convenient way for both the US and Russia. 

The Rojava and northern Syria communities decided to strive for self-determination. This compromises the so called "stability" that imperialism needs and always tried to impose in the Middle East by drawing borders that divide nations in an arbitrary way (in the case of Kurdish people in four parts). The guardians of these interests have always been reactionary or dictatorial governments that oppresses the local people and ethnic or religious minorities.

After the political instability in Turkey because of the ups and downs of it´s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the complications of Saudi´s monarchy in other conflicts like Yemen and after Israel´s defeat in Gaza, the US government found a partner in Iran towards the future. This is in part related to Vladimir Putin´s and his main colaborator hability for political manipulation.

In order to crush the revolution started in Rojava by kurdish people and now supported also by arabs, armenian, assyrian and other communities of northern Syria, the main regional powers have used terrorist organizations, mercenaries and even their own direct military intervention. In this direction, the turkish military forces invaded Jarabulus and there is a permanent support of the Daesh terrorist organization by the turkish government . We can recall as well the participation of the lebanese pro-irani militia Hezbollah in Hesekê´s battle.

Kerry and Lavrov defend their position claiming "for a united Syria" as the main objective. This is no different than the turkish and their Syrian National Coalition mercenaries argument, which is shared too by Bashar al-Assad. In spite of little disagreements between all of them, it is clear none of them even considers the possibility of kurdish autonomy in regards to Syria.

US vicepresident Joe Biden, who warned during an official visit to Rojava forces that they should withdraw east of the Euphrates in order to keep counting with air support for their military operations, confirmed that this US support to the SDF has come to an end. Kerry has lined up with Biden´s statements by supporting the turkish invasion in Jarabulus and firmating that the US does not support any independent kurdish initiative.

The Russian foreign affairs minister went even further, because he recognized that kurdish self-determination compromises the imperial plans of Russia and its regional allies . As it was published by Sputnik News, Lavrov stated that kurdish people should be a part of the solution and not a disrupting factor in Syria, which could start a chain reaction in the region which nobody is interested in.

When speaking about this "chain reaction", Lavrov is obliquely refering to Iran (an imperial country who oppresses minorities -even the persian people-) and the effect of this reaction is feared by the Ayatollahs, Russia and their now so called "american friends". They clearly wish to avoid any upheavals coming from kurdish and balouchis minorities opressed by the iranian theocratic state.

Once again, as we warned in several articles in this blog, the powers seem to manage to agree when it comes to fight against the revolution. But this time kurdish are not alone with the mountains. They surely can count on the solidarity of other nations of the world, which is built day by day and can be more powerful than any army.

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martes, 23 de agosto de 2016

KDS express its solidarity with Rojava against the coward attack of Assad’s regime and its mercenaries


From Kurdistan Desde el Sur (Kurdistan From ths South) we alredy have warned that when the Baathist regime could breath again, iwould unleash all of its fury against Kurdish people, as it is doing already against Syrian people. From this organización we too dennounced the Alliance whic was being formed between the four nation-states occupyingt Kurdistan and  oppressing its communities.

From more than a year ago, our collective express solidarity with Kurdish people and revolution, because of that, being consistent, we demand the inmediate retreat of criminal Bashar al-Assad’s  troops from Rojava and Northern Syria. Kurdistan From the South express all its support towards people’s militias of Democratic Siria Forces, YPG,YPJ  Asayiş, the Federal Administration, the Party of Democratic Union, and TEV-DEM in this new battle, this time against the criminalregime and its mercenary dogs. 

We side with Kurdish people in the struggle against all its enemies, and we make a call  to all leftwing, fgithting, anti-imperialist, popular, revolutionary  organizations and personalities, and the ones which at least claim to defend democratic rights, to show solidarity in active form with the heroic Kurdish people. It is a duty of revolutionaries of the world to side with the oppressed of the world, in their same trenches, against oppressive states and imperialism, which settle their scores at the price of thousands of deaths.

Because of all this, we from Kurdistan from the South, say: 

¡Biji Şoreşa Rojavayê!

¡Her biji Kurdistan!

sábado, 20 de agosto de 2016

Geneva or Kurdish autonomy?


By Martín Romero
Traduced by Pablo Mestrovic

Changes on the ground

It is not anything new that Geneva negotiations, intended to solve the Syrian crisis, have not bore fruits. But since their last round, there have been many changes on the ground and regarding the negotiations between the parties.

Regarding the military situation, the advance of Baath’s regime forces and its allies, Russia and Iran, is remarkable. It must be remembered that these forces are not only the Syrian Arab Army and Baath affiliated local militias, but also Iraqi Shia militias and the Lebanese Hezbollah, together with important quantities of Russian and Iranian troops.

These advances have been achieved mostly against the groups affiliated with Syrian National Coalition, which are linked to Turkey and Gulf monarchies and against the “former” Al Nusra Front (now called Fatih al Sham Front, after its split from Al Qaeda), a tactical – and in some cases even ideological- ally of several of these groups.

Regime’s offensive against eastern Aleppo, under the control of said militias has closed the encirclement, has cut the only supply route, laying the siege to the eastern neighborhoods of the city. Their residents suffer the bombings of Syrian Air Force, Russian aircraft, Syrian army artillery and the mortar and rockets fire of both  pro-Assad and opposition militias.

The fighting have increased after the counter attack of the opposition, intended to break the siege, unleashing a fire storm over the city coming from all directions. The population is not only suffering the consecuences of military actions and the random shots. There is also scarcity of basic supplies, lack of basic services, food y emergency aid, so Aleppo is going through a terrible humanitarian crisis.

Regime’s operations against the self-proclaimed Islamic State have had other outcomes. The more important of them has been the frustrated offensive against Raqqah. Its start was an answer to the announcement of an operation by Syrian Democratic Forces to liberate Caliphate’s capital, which later was suspended in order to concentrate all the efforts on the liberation of Manbij. Islamic State gangs inflicted an astonishing defeat to the regime and its allies in the outskirts of al-Tabqah, through a counter attack, causing many casualties and a chaotic retreat.

On the other hand, Syrian Democratic Forces have liberated huge areas and towns in the west bank of the Euphrates, in which seemed an advance to link the canton of Efrin with the other ones. However, that advance was halted, and the efforts were focused on the siege of Manbij and its slow liberation of terrorist gang which hid inside it, using trapped civilians as human shields y set explosive devices everywhere.

Negotiations take place not only in Switzerland

A meaningful fact of the last weeks was the failed coup attempt by a part of Turkish armed forces – with which we have dealt broadly in several notes in kurdistandesdelsur.blogspot.com.ar – caused substantive changes in the relationship between the countries involved in the Syrian conflict.

Secret conversations had already taken place in Algeria between the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the one of Bashar Al Assad, which were sponsored by the Iranian government. And there are constant interviews between foreign affairs ministers of Russia and the United States, Sergei Lavrov and John Kerry, which ¿by chance? were meeting the day of Turkish military coup attempt.

Despite the counter-coup and the repression which was unleashed by Turkish government, which got stronger only in the short term, the limits and weaknesses of Erdogan regarding his ambitions, start to come to light and for that reason he is forced to make pacts with his rivals. this, to the pressure of main  world powers and the deep economic, social and political crisis which Turkey is going through, is the reason for the  rapprochement of Erdogan with Russia, Syria and Iran.

Another common factor between these two states and Turkey is the Kurdish question, which worries both of three, because their authoritarian regimes see the Kurds as a threat to their internal policies, based as they are on political repression and supression of ethnic minorities.

Now, ¿what concerns the United States and Russia regarding the Kurdish issue? There are clues, coming from statements from senior officers of both states, and actions, both diplomatic and military following them, of Kurdish autonomy breaking up the new political map designed for the future by the main powers and their plans for the region.

Kurdish autonomy, federalism and plebiscite

Following two different paths, both the administrations of Kurdistan Regional Governemt (of Iraq) and Rojava have promoted autonomy processes, not only against the will of the governments of the states occupying these regions of Kurdistan (Iraq and Syria), but also against the will of Iran’s theocratic regime, which also occupies part of Kurdistan and is allied with both.

In Rojava and Northern Syria, a Federal Administration has been declared, promoted by representative organs of all communities living in the region. A Constituent Charter has been redacted, a capital has been declared and Syrian Democratic Forces have been made the official self-defence forces.

In Bashur (Iraqi Kurdistan) the Kurdistan Regional Government, represented by president Massoud Barzani, has promoted a plebiscite to choose on the independence from Iraqi state.

That is the way as the possibility of self-determination of Kurds starts to take a more solid form, but in two different ways, because the second one is linked to clans’ interests and their businesses with neighbouring countries, and the first one to multiethnic democracy and social revolution which is being carried out in Rojava.

The negotiating parties and Geneva

Let’s sum to all this that Iran, after the 5 +1 Pact, has become the real protagonist in the Middle East, despite the ambitions of Erdogan and the successes of Turkey, taking the role of regional interlocutor and ally both of the United States and Russia. This happens as a result of the weakness of the Americans in imposing their plans in international relations, both political and commercial.

That is the reason why Russia and the United States accelerate or stop the Geneva negotiations according to what happens on the ground. The reason for the disagreement in the last round of discussions has been the inclusion (or not) of a representation in them of the Federal Administration of Rojava and Northern Syria. Up to now, both the Syrian regime and the opposition have been uncompromising on the participation of a delegation of that origin in the conversations.

It is in the same sense of definitions we make in “Kurdistan from the South”, that the issue is dealt with in an article published in Hawar News (http://en.hawarnews.com/worries-over-aleppo-and-calls-for-helping-refugees/) In that article, the co-president of the Democratic Assembly of Rojava and Northern Syria, Ilham Ahmed, talked about what happens in the negotiations’ arena, the secret pacts, and about some parties not aiding the refugees. She also talked about the humanitarian catastrophes produced by the war not being taken seriously, while the powers and the governments show the bargaining cards.

Not only them, but all the voices taking part to some extent in the negotiations, have raised against the federalist statement, differing in some points and coinciding in others. The unity of Syria was until now the main argument, alleging that the will of the peoples of Rojava and Northern Syria is “unilateral” and threatens the unity of Syria. That is the way they hide that there is a common interest uniting the Baathist regime, Syrian opposition coalition, the governments of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and also Russia and the United States.

However, Lavrov has been the one who tried to convince the other parties of the necessity of the presence of a Rojava delegation in the conversations, and this has not been totally, but also hase found support in some of the parties, including the special envoy of the UN, Staffan de Mistura, and some other US officers.


Knowing the general purposes of all the actors, everything pointed to the next negotiations in Geneva having also the purpose of crushing the revolution in Rojava and Northern Syria, limiting its horizons to the framework of imperialist plans and regional authoritarian regimes y eroding the will of freedom and self-determination of Kurdish people and other minorities which see Rojava as an example to follow. Will the next session in Geneva a new version of Laussanne treaty, as we already warned in previous articles (read http://debateskurdos.blogspot.com.ar/2016/05/ginebra-es-una-trampa-imperialista-para.html).

miércoles, 27 de julio de 2016

There will never be a democracy in Turkey without ousting Sultan Erdogan


By  Martín Romero
The Executive Committee of PKK (Kurdish Workers’ Party) published an statement en which it says that the Turkey’s currently ruling party, the AKP, “ is unable to solve neither the problems of the country nor its democratization”.
The statement emphasized “the necessity of establishing a bloc formed by the forces of radical democracy in order to achieve the democratization de Turkey, preventing further coups, and end the oppression and injustice” (The statement can be read here https://anfenglish.com/news/pkk-democracy-bloc-must-be-formed-in-turkey-immediately)
We, the staff of “Kurdistan from the South” think that only the organization of the workers and all the oppressed in Turkey together with Kurdish Liberation Movement, will be able to defeat the AKP fascist regime,  the pro-coup military clique and the fabric of  “Deep State”.
In the same way, the unity between Syrian revolutionary movement and popular forces of Rojava and Northern Syria will be able to consolidate revolution, in order to spread it and defeat the dictatorships and authoritarian regimes in the region.
The bourgueois leadership of Turkey’s traditional parties will not be the one who will allow the self determination of Kurdish people. Nor they will help in the implementation of Democratic Confederalism.
Much for the contrary, they are likely to stand in the side of the authoritarian state, be it Kemalist or Islamist-conservative, in order to defeat Kurdistan Liberation Movement and Turkish democratic and popular forces, as happened in the past.
Only with the defeat of Erdogan and his ambitions of building a sultanate it will be possible to advance in that direction, with a broad calling to all circles supporting a radical democracy, boosting mobilization in the streets of the cities, the villages and the mountains of Turkey and Bakur.
In this sense, unity for imposing a true reform of the Constitution, not through parliamentary agreements between party higher echelons – as happened up to now- but with a real, democratic Constituent Assembly, in which the whole population would discuss y solve al its aspects, is critical.
Within this framework, we will propose socialist measures and a workers’ and people’s government within a Federation of States and Autonomous Regions of the Middle East together with self- determination of the peoples of Kurdistan, for them to be the ones who decide about their own future,  instead of the states oppressing them.
We, the comrades of “Kurdistan from the South”, commit ourselves to launch an internationalist call to collaborate, to participate and discuss with all the organizations, both local and international, as we already have been doing, to redouble the efforts for breaking the chains of peoples suffering the repression and the harassment of Turkish regime.

martes, 26 de julio de 2016

The theocratic regimen is prepairing itself to take a very important role as the capitalism governance guardian executing kurdish activists


According to Ara News, the Iranian Regime executed several dozens of activists in the country, they were hang out in the most important public places.
In this context, the goverment also arrested more tan 40 young people in the last weeks, 27 of these were hang out by regime, too.
 The News Agency also said that the Regime never explained the real reasons of these executions. They said that they were drug smugglers. The truth is that the iranian regime showed false proofs to incriminate to these kurdish activists.
The false proofs were submitted in order to avoid Human Rights complaints. A kurdish spokesman explained to Ara News that they are witnesses of brutal executions in the streets of Iran, meanwhile, the International  Comunity says nothing and it doesnt do something against Regime.
 Many Human Right organizations are fighting against this kind of executions.
In the last two years, more than 2500 people have died.
The theocratic Regime of Iran is prepairing itself to take a very important role as the  Capitalism Governance Guardian. As the 5+1 Agreement , signed by the Ayatollahs, Obama, Putin and the Pope, the iranian troops and the Shiites militias of Hezbollah, will be in charge of supporting reactionary goverments- Syria and Irak-.
The Iranian  leaders know that one of the most important obstacles are the Brave kurdish Militias, They are performing a Revolution that can change Middle East feudal social structures.

viernes, 22 de julio de 2016

After the falling coup in Turkey: Erdogans victory is a "Pirro Style"


By Juan Giglio

The falling coup in Turkey strenghened the oficialism which leaders took advantage of these circumstances. They “cleaned” the Army and Judiciary sect consolidating the islamization of the institutions.
This point of view, matches with the AKP intentions of “smashing” political opponents. These opponentents are trying to stop the modification of the current regime. The oficialism wants to turn it out presidentialist in order to concentrate as much power us possible.
 A part of this plan was removing the immunity to hundreds of HDP deputies, many of them were pressed to vote for the change of Constitution.  Erdogan’s strength can be seen in the actitude of AKP militants and other fasist sects such as MHP, they have gone to kurdish cities and HDP buildings to execute “infidels”.
But the oficialism manipulation of recent events shows the weakness and despair of turkish Govertment that is going back in national and international affairs.
Germany, turkish’s strategic ally, have recognized armenian genocide. For that reason, european leaders are trying to avoid that Turkey was incorporated to EU.
However, the most important defeat, have been in the battlefield in Syria, there, Isis is falling against its main enemy: the brave kurdish militias, on the other hand, the kantons are going to be united.
If the kantons are unified, the border between Syria and Turkey would be completely closed so Islamic State would lose its main supporter-Turkey-..
For all these reasons, one of the first Erdogans’ decisions  were to close the Incirlik Militar Base, from this militar base planes took off in order to bomb Isis positions.
In addition to that and the isolated position of Turkey in the international context, the weakness and instability of the Army Forces can be seen in the last days events.
Erdogan will have to face workers and the brave kurdish militias, they are fighting heroically in the south east of Turkey, but now he has got a weaker Army than before.
AKP is mortally wounded because its strategic defeat in the north of Syria, there despite its limits is being born a Social Revolution.
In this context, it is very important to understand that Turkey belongs to an imperialist band which is going back against those who created the 5+1 agreement which was endorsed by Obama, Putin, the Pope and the iranian bourgeoisie. On the other hand, Turkish Goverment belongs to Arabia, Qatar, Israel and a sect of Republican Party band.
So, the coup didn’t occur by chance. There is a counterrevolutionary agreement between the Secretary of State (USA), John Kerry and the russian Minister of Forein Affairs, Sergei Lavrov.
These officials only endorsed Erdogan’s goverment when the coups’ troops started to go back, It shows, at least, some complicity with the insurrectionists.
At the end, the Revolution will win because its opponents suffer from a deep crisis and they are fighting against themselves. Also revolutionaries keep on winning important battles in Syria and Irak.
The revolutionaries must take advantage of these circunstances and participate actively, we must organize solidary activities and send international fighters to be incorporated to the  struggle for freedom and let everybody knows that the best chances for poor and opressed people is: Socialism.
The objective circumtances of the Middle East are very propitious for the struggle for freedom, the defeat of dictatorial goverments, and the necessity of socialist autonomy regions.

domingo, 17 de julio de 2016

TO GET A DEMOCRATIC SYRIA, IT IS NESSESARY TO EXPEL THE IMPERIALISM, ISIS AND BASHAR

By Juan Giglio:

President Erdogan’s desire of becoming himself sultan in the new building of Otoman Empire keep on isolating him from his old allies as Angela Merkel, she recently snubbed him during the vindication in the Germany Parliament that told: “Armenian genocide was perpetrated by turkish imperialist Army”.

I
n this context, “the sunni group” formed by: Turkey, Arabia, Qatar, Israel, and a part of the Republican Party keep on loosing the war, because the mercenary bands that support Isis, had to leave Faluya in Irak and they also are going to loose Mandij and Raqqa  cities son.

The Shia front leaded by Obama, Bashar, Putin and Iran, and the Pope that promote “5 plus 1 agreement” and the Meeting of Ginebra, is winning because of the bombings,  Hezbollah and its circumstantial allies: the kurdish militias that are fighting to impose Democratic Confederalism System.

Isis main defeat is the closing of the access to Turkey related to the lost positions in Mandij city. This is a knock out for Turkey because through its borders it supports the troops of Islamic State, last ones also became an oil and gas smugglers, the oil and gas that come from the  conquered places.

The crisis of old imperialist goverments-Israel, Turkey, Arabia- allows that kurdish forces move along.

Despite the conciliatory behaviour of the kurdish leaders, the decision of closing the kantons and the promotion of a Federal Regime for the whole Sirya, attacks the imperialist politics and the local bourgeoisies, they dont want democratization neither autonomy.

To carry on the pillage of the oil and gas sources, Obama and his lackeys need a strong and unificated State in Syria in order to exploit workers and the people leaving in this territory.

The international crisis generated by Lejman Brothers debacle originated a global recessive situation and a response of the masses movement in the most parts of the world. This situation reduces the chances  of implementation of economics adjustment plans.

For all these reasons, Obama, Putin and Iran plans’ is not to guarantee the kurdish autonomy, it is to use kurdish democratic intentions to defeat common enemies and then attack their democratic desires.

The tools to proceed will be the Al Bashar Army Forces, Hezbollah and the “fifth column” inside YPG, YPJ and PYD, those leaders that don’t want to continue the Rojava Revolution to the last consecuencies.

The revolutionaries must be next to kurdish people criticizing the intentions of those who don’t want to carry on with the most importat point of the social revolution that is to expropriate the capitalists in order to their property become workers property.

Thus the revolution will be able to count on the sources that allow itself carry on with its most important demacratic intentions: it is to achieve a significative improvement in the quality of life and the level of monetary income for the workers class.

The direct democratic regime must be used to organize a Socialist economy, but it is imposible to built a democratic system with a capitalist and imperialist bourgeoisie because it dominates and distroys the planet in which we leave.

To achieve this goal, it is nessesary to defeat the enemies of democracy, Obama, Rohuani, Barzani,etc. It is posible with the unity of those social and politic sects that are interested in going ahead with this socialist revolution.

A strategic alliance with Unites States, France, Italy, or Iran, will carry the kurdish masses and othe others opressed ethnicities to a non solution condition.

¡Long life to Rojava Revolution! ¡Long life to Mandij and the union of kantons!Let’s go for a democratic Syria building the unique alternative system : the Socialism supported by people assemblies and militias.


Kurdistán Desde el Sur Home

lunes, 16 de noviembre de 2015

The revolutionary situation in the Middle East. By Juan Carlos Beica

After the Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy in 2008, the worker and popular struggles gave a leap due to the general strikes in Europe and the USA and the insurrections that knocked down several dictatorships during the Arab Spring.

This context and the great international solidarity enabled Palestinians of the String of Gaza defeat the poweful Zionist army, situation that gave a lift on the struggle against the national, racial and sexual oppression worldwide.

For that reason, it is not by chance that after the Palestinian victory, the Mexican assemblies and militias from the north of Syria and Turkey have spread and popularised. These are concrete expressions of the advance of consciousness among wide sectors of the mass.

The effects of the destruction of the Stalinist apparatus and the deep divisions that are taking place in the imperial heights, have strengthened this reality, promoting new revolutions, as the one that it is taken place in Yemen and the one that it is coming by the hand of the Third Palestinian Intifada.

Counter-revolutionary pacts and the law of the mad firefighter

As the imperialist's head, Obama is aware that he does not have this great tool to control the revolutions that was the Stalinism, as his parties have fallen from grace after the revolutionary events of the 90's.

Because of this, since he assumed, he has been  encouraging  the signing of agreements with the counter-revolutionary managements that still remained and have a kind of prestige to deceive  the masses, as the "bolivarianos"from Venezuela, the Castro brothers o the Iranian ayatollahs.

In that way, Obama's closest civil servants have been working during a long time to materialize the so-called "5+1" Pact with Germany, England, Russia, China, France and Iran.

The imperialists reached an agreement with the Shiite authorities to make them "stabilize" the Middle East, as the Zionist army's defeat left the traditional Yankee officer badly wounded and the other sepoy government, Saudi Arabia, has come out badly after having invaded Yemen.

As a consecuence of these agreements, war against ISIS within Iraq's territory is practically in the Iranian general's hands that apart from this, have the control of Lebanon and a big part of the Syrian territory, where they are supporting the dictator Bashar Al Assad together with Putin's airplanes.

Far from "stabilizing ", this pact has created more and deeper clashes between the bourgeois factions and the imperialism itself. As a revolutionary leader said in the past: "it is the mad firefighter law", because instead of throwing water to the fire, they are throwing petrol to it.

Obama, the european, yanquee and russian imperialism, the zionists,  the Arab bourgeoisie, the turkish government, Iran, the ISIS and Al Qaeda bands agree in smashing the insurrectionary process in thecMiddle East.

However, instead of working in "teams", they are killing and betraying each other, throwing corpses from one side to the other.  The absence of an "only and strong command"gives the revolution an advantage, because people of the region are confronting an enemy that,in spite of throwing them tons of bombs, is becoming every
time weaker.

This mega crisis in the heights enabled very important triumphs, as the one of the YPG and YPJ militias against the fascist troops of the Islamic State in Kobani.

After this victory and in spite of the conciliatory policy of the PKK and other Kurdish parties, the revolution has entered in Turkey, the country that owns some of the NATO's most important headquarters. There the mass movement has gone out to face the repression and the attacks of Erdogan and his Islamic State agents.

This general dynamic has arrived to remain in the Kurdish Irak and Iran, where worker strikes and democratic demonstrations burst; also in Yemen and Bahrein, whose people is heroically confronting the allies of Saudi Arabia.

All these events put in evidence that the main conflict between Revolution and Counterrevolution today has its epicentre in the Middle East, and that whatever happens there, it will have its effects, positive or negative,  worldwide, therefore the task of the revolutionaries cannot be other than to support the most progressive forces of the region.

From this location, whoever raises the flags of proletarian internationalism must risk to join with the most radical sectors, in order to build a management able to confront the Revolution's enemies and consequently fight for the Socialist Federation of Middle Eastern States.

We receive a Turkish Trotskyist leader: Volcan Gümüs, from Ankara.

Volcan, in the middle, with our comrades.
On October 27 we had the honour of interviewing the leader of the Movement for the Permanent Revolution in Turkey, Volcan Gumus, who also takes part in the management of the Ankara Transport Union, twelve of whose members died in the bloody attack that took place in that city.

Volcan had been in the demostration against Turkish Airlines, in the closing ceremony of the FIT, and taking part in different interviews and activities with PO, Izquierda Socialista and TPR.

After the interview, which we made together with the TPR and Resumen  Latinoamericano comrades, we agreed to continue getting closer to know more about the political situation of Turkey and other Middle Eastern countries.

How could you define Erdogan's government?
Erdogan's government is conservative, anti-worker, anti-left, anti-youth, and anti-women. This is part of a policy that wants to make a transformation of the current regime to a religious one.

At the same time he has his own imperialist policy, as Erdogan sees himself as a Ottoman Empire' s sultan. For this, he has an interventionist policy in the region, for example in Yemen. Erdogan gets into all matters because he has an imperialist and interventionist vocation.

In this context of elections and repression, what does the attack in Ankara mean?
This is the fourth attack in two years. The first one was in the border between Syria and Turkey, earlier this year it was one in Diyarbakir (historic capital of Kurdistan), the other attack was in Suruc, and now it is in Ankara.

In Diyarbakir's attack it was seen the presence of ISIS  and Erdogan's government complicity that allows this situation within the turkish borders.

Turkey is turning into Pakistan, that is to say a country serving military operations against other countries.  In that way, Turkey is the support base of ISIS against Syria, that it could be as Afghanistan, because whoever invade, it loses.

There are three elements that demonstrate the complicity of Erdogan's government with the attack. On the one hand, it is documented on video and photographs the bond between Erdogan and ISIS, as it is seen in the border with Syria, where they transfer lorries with weapons and terrorists, and nobody says anything.

There is no doubt that the government, at least, allows ISIS  free movement within Turkey. Before the attack, there was a public list of about 19 names of possible attackers and those who perpetate the attack were in that list.

The Turkish Intelligence Services throroughly knew this situation. What is more, one of the suicide attacker's mother denounced that her son was conected to ISIS and that he would take part of the attack, therefore she demanded his imprisonment.

The mother surely said this to save his son's life, but the government do nothing. To this it must be added that the demonstration was publicly threatened, but there was not a deployment to guarantee the security of it.

What is the economic situation in Turkey and the country's workers?
The economic situation is getting worse together with the global economic situation, as one thing cannot be separated from the other. This can be seen in the movement of the capitals and in the currency 's war.

Regarding the worker's movement, the workday and the days of work per week have increased. It is normal to work between 10 or 12 hours and 6 days a week. In Turkey the unionization is low and the few existing unions are in the mafia's hands.

From the legal proceedings' point of view the worker's rights are being trampled and justice acts with an anti-worker guideline. In spite of this situation, the labour movement is active, fighting and goes forward.


This could be seen in May with a very important strike of the metallurgical workers that raised against the government. The elections will have an influence on the later development of the labour movement, because a weaker Erdogan's government will cause better conditions for the worker's intervention.