ANKARA – Author and activist Gretchen Dutschke-Klotz has expressed support for Abdullah Öcalan’s recent “Call for Peace and a Democratic Society,” stating: “All obstacles to the Kurdish people’s active participation in democratic politics must be removed, and a peaceful and voluntary union among peoples must be established.”
German-American writer and activist Gretchen Dutschke-Klotz released a message of support for Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan’s peace call. Emphasizing the significance of the ongoing negotiation process between Öcalan and the Republic of Turkey, she praised the Kurdish people’s determination to live together peacefully.
Her full statement reads: “I consider the ongoing negotiation process between Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan and the Republic of Turkey important, and I appreciate the Kurdish people’s will for coexistence and a democratic society. All obstacles to the Kurdish people’s active participation in democratic politics must be removed, and a peaceful and voluntary union among peoples must be established. Your struggle, which prioritizes gender equality and ecology, is inspiring for all of us. I hope that Öcalan’s efforts do not go to waste. In any case, this opportunity must be seized. I believe this is very promising, because it could lead the way for democratization in Turkey—and even in Syria. Our hope is in that direction for these countries too. This is an opportunity for their democratization as well.”
Gretchen Dutschke-Klotz is known for her activism in West Germany’s 1968 Student Youth Movement, where she worked alongside her husband, Rudi Dutschke. Together, they were leading figures in the Socialist German Student Union (SDS) and the broader extra-parliamentary opposition of the Federal Republic.