Dr. Jeffrey Miley: Abdullah Ocalan is more than a national hero

2024-02-07 11:10:03


	ANKARA - Dr. Thomas Jeffrey Miley stated that Abdullah Ocalan's captivity is "a symbol of the oppression of the Kurds" and said: "He (Ocalan) is more than just a national hero. He also, due to his voluminous writings on on democratic modernity or democratic confederalism, is a leading thinker with respect to what the alternative to capitalist modernity can be. "

	 

	The Democratic Nation project developed by Ocalan against the despotic royal domination established by the capitalist civilization over society was seen as a "threat". For this reason, PKK Leader Abdullah Ocalan, who was brought to Turkey with the partnership of international powers, has been held in isolation in Imralı Type F High Security Closed Prison for 25 years. There has been no news from Ocalan for the last 35 months and his family and lawyer were prevented from seeing him for various reasons during the process.

	 

	While the state was trying to prevent Ocalan and his ideas from meeting the public, different peoples in many countries, especially the Kurds, found ways to meet him. In this context, the "Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan, solution to the Kurdish issue" campaign, which was held in 74 centers around the world on October 10, 2023, reached a wide national and international support network.

	 

	'NATO IS BEHIND THE CONSPIRACY'

	 

	Cambridge University Sociology Department Lecturer Dr Thomas Jeffrey Miley evaluated the abduction of PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan to Turkey through an international conspiracy and the subsequent isolation and Ocalan's role in peace. Miley, who is also the author of the books "Your Freedom and Mine" and "Self-determination struggles: in pursuit of the democratic confederalist ideal", which are about Ocalan, the Kurds' right to self-determination and Democratic Confederalism in the 21st century, reminded that NATO, of which Turkey is a member, was behind the conspiracy.

	 

	THERE IS THE USA BEHIND IT

	 

	Miley stated that in order to understand the abduction of Ocalan, the dissolution of the imperialist system and the current crisis conditions must be understood. Miley said: “We have in the news nowadays. Obviously the war on Palestine, the ethnic cleansing and genocide of Palestine is also backed up by the United States with its partner Israel. The prime imperialist power United States, which is my government, behind the international conspiracy of Ocalan. Now, the capture of Ocalan shows the way in which the imperial powers were together and also the ways in which they conceive of Ocalan’s alternative as very dangerous to the status quo, because he is not just a key role player in a call for peace, but he also has an idea of what an alternative to this imperial order could look like. Which goes by the name various names, and sometimes we call it Democratic confederalism.”

	 

	'THE INDICATOR OF THE OPPRESSION OF THE KURDS'

	 

	Stating that there is an exceptional regime imposition on Ocalan in Imralı and that this was Turkey's choice, Miley said:” Imralı imprisonment is a paradigm for the repression of the Kurdish movement. Like I said, Ocalan remains a key role player in a peace process that could happen. Ocalan remaining outside of the rule of law in Imralı is symbolic of atrocities that are written upon the Kurds.”

	 

	‘IN ORDER TO NOT UPSET THEIR TRADE PARTNER, TURKEY...'

	 

	Pointing out that there are limits to what Western powers want to do, Miley reminded the recent call of the former president of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to end the isolation of Ocalan and said: "There are have been some minimal steps by the international community to try to enforce some sort of legal or law abiding standards, but obviously the inhumane treatment of Ocalan remains in place and the imperial powers do what they can to not upset their trading partner Turkey. I think part of the issue with the international order is it's been very weak in its attempts to out of to the situation in Imralı.”

	 

	'OCALAN IS AN AMAZING FIGURE’

	 

	Miley said: I think, Ocalan is an amazing figure. The version of the capitalist modernity versus what he calls democratic modernity is very inspiring. For those of us who are searching for an alternative to the catastrophic dynamics of capitalist modernity, Ocalan has a very important contribution. And I think that's part of the reason why people see him to be so dangerous.”

	 

	‘HE IS MORE THAN JUST A NATIONAL HERO’

	 

	Miley said that Ocalan was "like a match that lit the fire" and said: “For that reason, his suffering is seen as the embodiment of suffering of the Kurdish people. His sacrifice is the embodiment of the sacrifices of Kurdish people. But at the same time, he's more than just a national hero. He also ,due to his voluminous writings on democratic modernity or democratic confederalism, is a leading thinker with respect to what the alternative to capitalist modernity can be. And so he captures the imagination, not only of the Kurdish masses, but also a lot of radicals around the globe.”

	 

	THEY THINK THEY CAN SILENCE HIS MESSAGE BUT...'

	 

	Miley added that hee was also in the Imralı delegation and that he had a book on the subject, and said: “Ocalan is widely seem to be someone whose freedom would be a prerequisite for a negotiation for peace. So in this respect he is a bit like Nelson Mandela. Nelson Mandela was in Robben Island for a long time and Mandela's freedom was a prerequisite for peace. I was on the Imralı delegations and my first book on the subject on, “Your freedom and Mine” is dedicated to judge Essa Musa, who is Nelson Mandela's lawyer. He was very much convinced that Ocalan could play a role very similar to the role played by Nelson Mandela in the end of the apartheid regime. His charismatic appeal, and the fact that Ocalan has the vision that he has, I think he's a crucial role player. And one thing that the Turks have never dare to kill him. But they isolate him and they think by isolating him they can silence his message, but they can't silence his messages. But he's not immortal. And it's very important that he to be released for a peace process to be accommodated with that, in fact, if for any reason, the peace process doesn't happen while he's alive, i think it will be very difficult for there to be a peace process.”

	 

	'DEMOCRATIC CONFEDERALISM IN THE 21ST CENTURY'

	 

	Miley noted that he wanted to place the people's right to self-determination in a broader framework, with the contribution of Ocalan in his "Self-determination struggles: in pursuit of the democratic confederalist ideal" book, following his “Your Freedom and Mine” book, and continued as follows: “I felt that I needed some further elaboration, and so in particular, to be able to situate the contribution of Ocalan within a broader frame of self-determination struggles and thinking about what democratic confederalism can mean in the 21st century. There's a variety of different articles all moving towards in pursuit of this democratic confederal ideal, which Ocalan holds up and the idea behind the book is to really flesh out what Democratic confederalism can mean in the 21st century.”

	 

	'AN ALTERNATIVE TO CAPITALITIST MODERNITY'

	 

	Stating that the motivation for writing his books was the Kurdish Freedom Movement, Miley completed his evaluations as follows: “I was invited in a delegation to Syria at the end of December 2014 by my student, to see what was happening in Rojava. From there I was brought into this network of people who are mobilizing around the Kurdish Freedom Movement and I was very impressed with what I saw. And as I got more and more involved in lobbying for the Kurdish cause, both at the level of academia and also in the European Parliament, UK Parliament and the Council of Europe, I felt like that intellectual legitimation of the cause needs to be contributed to, so I felt that that by taking very seriously the ideas of the movement is a way of legitimating and strengthening the movement.”